Creatimension Neptunia Riders
by Kamen Rider Dimension
Summary: Five CPUs, defeated in the Gamindustri Graveyard. A cursed man, left there to rot. When Nepgear comes into contact with the mysterious Bauen, she'll find herself embroiled in the darkness of his past, destruction and pain left in his wake. Kamen Rider Build... it's time for you to atone for your sins and become a Kamen Rider once more!
1. 1 - the metal moonsault

**I don't know why I'm releasing this story so close to another story, but I had the beginnings, so I thought I would put it out there and see what you readers think! unlike Ex-aid, Build has a large focus on the variety of bottles e has at his disposal and how they can be interchanged, so you can expect a lot of bottle changes to happen, which means you're going to see 'are you ready!?' a lot. Just a little warning before we begin. ANyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: Building up some tension, aren't you? Takumi, fight for those by your side!_

 _Takumi: Henshin! Kamen rider Build, fight for your sins!_

 _Bauen: I have few regrets, but those I hold weigh heavily upon me._

 _Takumi: Then we'll have to make sure you can earn forgiveness!_

 _B + T: Rider once more! The story begins!_

* * *

Gamindustri - a world of digital heaven. There, gamers live in tandem with peace and sanity. With technological advancements unheard of, the art of gaming has become a science, producing only the greatest for the people to play. Split into five countries known as Landmasses, the people were free to travel s they wished, enjoying every aspect of life, though many naturally chose to have a staying ground in which to settle in.

They were ruled by five CPUs, four at first to match the original four landmasses before the fifth was created. Planeptune, the land of Purple Progress, was ruled over by the goddess Purple Heart, a cheerful leader who, even in few times of arrogance, has proven herself to be a dependable leader. Lastation, the land of Black Regality, was watched over by the CPU named Black Heart, a strict but caring goddess who let nought get in the way of her people's safety. Lowee, the land of White Serenity, was ruled by the goddess White Heart, a calm intelligent character that held the ferocity of a lion when it came to protecting her people. Leanbox had the CPU Green heart, a mature individual with great talent and the kindness few could boast of.

And then there was Genmeer, the land of Midnight Majesty. It had not been there originally, but that didn't make it any less of a revolutionary place. Ruled over by the lone male CPU, the god Game Heart, it was a place where one could easily shed their affiliations to a certain console and embrace them all – by not producing a console of their own, they shared their games with all over landmasses and were loved for it. It had been a rather recent arrival in comparison to the others, the leader known as Game Heart not born into the role, but rather, a paediatrician turned CPU.

The reason for such a change being that he was no ordinary maker, like the others that filled the lands. He held a special power granted to him by games themselves, holding an entirely different power to anything else in Gamindustri. With the Gashats, game cartridges that held a special virus within them, and the gamer driver that came with them, he could become a kamen rider, defending the world with the power of videogames.

Things had been peaceful in time, lord Game Heart being able to hang up the gamer driver as there was little need to fight with it; any distractions from monsters needed only a small amount of power to overcome. The landmasses came together and all was happy.

But not for long.

Shops became boarded up, creators starved and were overworked and death loomed over the majority of the residents, but the CPUs refused to let it be game over for their lands. They had thought themselves severed from the chaotic, lawless lands, but ever since the advent of the cruel ASIC - the Arfoire Syndicate of International Crime – morality had seemingly disappeared. A vast majority of the people had come to worship an entirely different being to their goddesses and god, known as Arfoire, and those who would turn them away remained silent, choosing instead to let it fester and grow. There was only a small amount of people who would care about the issue, doing all they could to prevent those who didn't fall for the false deity from entering the cruel place… the Gamindustri Graveyard.

It was home to those who tired of the corrupt world they lived in, unable to reach the small bastion of safety in the various landmasses, a place of madness and chaos for those who wished to remove themselves from it. That is where we pick up our tale, in a hell for those who wanted heaven….

The burning sky rumbled as it lashed out, bolts of lightning dancing around above the hell as if to taunt all those who were forced into its vile clutches. Random junk lay scattered around, streams of lava providing the only proper light with which to see the masses of rubbish and the small amounts of crimson foot ground. Two pairs of feet crunched against the metal, pushing aside the precariously stacked pieces as they looked around. It appeared safe; they could afford to take a break, somewhat.

" _As its name implies, this is the home to those whose time has passed on, resting for the rest of eternity. All things you see in this place were inhabitants of Gamindustri proper."_ A light voice explained to the two travellers, their main guide in the calamity that was the Gamindustri Graveyard. Her name was Histoire, the oracle of Planeptune, a tome that could take a physical form and had helped the growth of both the Landmass and its goddess.

"O-oh, really?" the pink haired girl remarked, playing awkwardly with the c shaped decoration on the brown hairband she wore. With a cream jumper reaching a tartan skirt, brown leggings meeting thigh high boots with pompoms decorating various places, Compa was certainly not the kind of girl you would expect to be, nor wish to be, suffering this sort of hell. Indeed, she was a nurse in training, but when it came to friends, there was little that would be able to stop her.

"Tch, you know, this is why I said it would okay if you stayed behind." Her companion spoke, holding up a waving finger. The brunette was IF, an adventurer from the guild who had been by the girl's side for a very long time. With a greatly oversized blue jacket over a tight black top and shorts, blue boots to finish, the girl seemingly tried to cut an imposing authoritive figure as her way of speaking would imply, only to add something that made her look somewhat like a child attempting to wear her father's coat.

"N-no way! I would never agree to that!" Compa objected passionately, drawing her arms in tight. "I want to help Nep-Nep, and Ge-Ge, and all of the others as well!"

"And so do I… it's hard to believe that they've been missing for three whole years now." IF sighed, folding her arms as she turned away. "I can't believe they would do something like this, making me worry about them like that…"

" _All will be made right soon. They all shown signs of being alive."_ Histoire stated to the two. Resting from the safety of Planeptune, the small fairy like blonde was able to communicate with them through the powers she held, guiding them through places that a creature as small as she was would have no chance of surviving. _"Even if they are seriously injured, as long as you hold the sharicite I prepared for you…"_

"Sharicite, the crystallised form of the faith the people have in their goddesses and god…" IF recalled, taking out the glowing baby blue object in her hand. "If what you say is true, then your right. We should hurry up and find what we came for Compa."

"Okey-dokey! We'll carry them home if we have to!" the bubbly nurse in training promised, and they were off again into the depths of the Gamindustri Graveyard. It would be an arduous journey into the darkness with little over than the vague guidance Histoire was able to pull off, but they were quick to run towards the sound of a low moan, leaping over residents that were too far gone to ever be recovered, a quick prayer sent their way.

"There! It's Nep!" IF cried as she caught a glimpse of a toned body before them, turning the corner only to have Compa bump into her with a small cry, green and pink eyes respectively turning to the rather strange scene before them. The woman – Neptune - was a beautiful figure, one that many would find trouble torturing, with long flowing purple hair that glowed with regal ethereality like her eyes, the pupils replaced with a white power symbol. Her plug suit was broken in many places, patches of black torn away as dark tentacles writhed over her body, holding her tightly in place.

"I-Iffy…? Compa…" The Planeptune goddess weakly asked, a single eye breaking open with apparently all the strength her body could muster. Beside her, another girl was limp in her restraints, the black tentacles being the only thing that kept her aloft; as soon as they let go, she would fall gracelessly to the ground. She had a white suit instead, the cleavage exposed showing that she was slightly less endowed than the other, pink hair aglow even in her unconscious state. Nepgear, her name was, was not in a good state at all.

Vert, of Leanbox, was also struggling. Green hair was marred with dirt, the white suit she wore crinkled by the bondage. It dug deep into her figure, clearly the most blessed of them all, a silent scream of pain escaping her. Noire of Lastation beside her, long white hair falling limply upon her back, various armoured pieces of her own black body suit cracking at the seams, threatening to leave her exposed. There was also Blanc, of Lowee. The smallest of them all, the tentacles still did not relinquish their hold, wrapping around the white body suit and pulling at the light blue hair, crimson eyes alight with fury as one particularly strange tentacle gagged her.

"Who would restrain them like this?" Compa questioned fearfully, looking between the rulers and their unique ties, IF instead shaking the purple haired goddess by the shoulders.

"Hey Nep, snap out of it, would you!?" the agent cried, only to give up when little response came. "It's no good, she's still out cold."

"Iffy, I found Egi!" Compa suddenly cried, drawing the brunette's attention behind the girl were another resided, his arms seemingly wrapped in a cocoon like his legs to spread him eagle upon the floor. A low groan, the same one that had signalled them to their location like before rang out from him as the two went over looking in abstract horror.

Unlike the others, his suit was full covering, a helmet attached to his head. The chest piece over a navy bodysuit highlighted with white pulsing lines, held what appeared to be a game HUD, four buttons upon the right side in purple, green, black and white. The armour all seemed aglow with what appeared to be stars in its very fabric, knee caps of silver being revealed at the very top of the leg restraints. The helmet was an odd design, having three spikes jutting to the left with the visor styled to be a pair of goggles, bright cartoonish eyes painted upon the glass. the masterpiece was a green bel buckle upon his waist attached to black bands, a purple leer open to reveal the name of Gamer driver a screen where a navy character was shown as a silhouette, a thick navy cartridge filling both slots on the left hand side.

"I… apologise you two… I wasn't able to help them…" the armoured man whispered, obviously pushing through copious pain. A rhythmic beeping had them looking to the chest piece, the life bar upon it gradually depleting. "The Gamer Driver utilises bio energy to work, making it so like a video game, you'll stay mostly fine until it completely depletes and I die. I could've done more, but I got caught by this blasted thing…" the unsaid warning was present. As soon as that life bar hit zero, unlike the goddess who would be left perfectly fine until their release, he would die. "It wasn't meant to be kept being used for a consecutive three years…"

" _Do not attempt to force them off by hand. Compa, please utilise the sharicite."_ Histoire instructed, the pink haired girl giving a nod as she did so, raising it up only to be interrupted by a grand roar.

"I won't let you do it!" the voice exclaimed, a primal tone that brought fear straight into their very bones.

"Who are you? You better not get in our way!" IF declared, pulling out two silver quatars. The beast facing them was a hulking titan of black, lines of green flowing through the armour as he gave a deep chuckle.

"For someone to be insane enough to come here… inconceivable!" the massive monster commented maniacally, with another laugh to match. "Three long years… I've been idle for too damn long. It's time to destroy!"

"I don't get his problem, but it looks like we have a fight on our hands. I'll handle him, so go and save the other CPUs Compa!" IF ordered, the nurse giving a nod as she ran over to the CPUs, holding the crystal aloft.

"Please… please just wake up!" Compa whispered desperately, the sharicite responding with an intense glow. Slowly, blue eyes opened, power symbols revealed after so long. The pink haired girl in the white body suit gently began to writhe, the waking motions of one trying to find their position with a few small moans.

"Ge-Ge! Are you back with us?" the nurse questioned, said girl turning her head towards the noise. She was Nepgear…? She had been… fighting, that was right…. And this was…

"Compa?" Nepgear questioned without strength, only getting a great big hug in response.

"Let me get the other CPUs too!" the nurse cried, only to flinch at IF's sudden agonised yell.

"Weak! You're so pathetically weak!" the black titan roared, clamouring back and forth with its armour to make a tremendous noise. "C'mon, make the fight more interesting for me! C'mon! CFW Judge is not to be left waiting!"

"IF?" Nepgear called out as the tentacles slivered away, leaving the girl standing free on her feet., dashing over to pull the girl up with white gloved hands.

"Gear? Well, I guess I'm a bit embarrassed to have you see me in such a sorry state…" IF awkwardly chuckled, Compa quick to join them. "If you want to help me take this guy on, be careful. He's freakishly strong!"

"Let me help out too!" the nurse requested, pulling out an enormous needle from out of nowhere. There was no sight of a particularly long needle, no, that would be too easy. Instead, it was a literal gigantically sized version of a syringe in Compa's hands, taller than the nurse and housing a strange purple liquid within its glass container. Many had tried to question what it was inside of that syringe, but only few could ever figure out more than a sixth of the items that went into the deadly brew. "We have to buy some time so everyone can wake up and regain their full strength!"

"I…I'll fight too!" Nepgear called out, pulling out what seemed to be only the handle of a sword done in white, a guard protecting her right hand from being severed. A quick flick had an energy beam shooting out though, the pink haired girl launching into the air towards the titan who happily laughed, CFW Judge ready to swing the massive energy weapon in his hand. Even then, he towered above all three girls, truly a giant to overcome if they ever wanted to become victorious. "Celestial Severance! MPBL limited deactivated!"

The blade was a blue in the air, flashing for a hundred strikes every second. A small change had it then turn into a gun, a barrage of bullets attempting to bite into the black armour that CFW Judge had. This pattern repeated for what appeared to be an infinite number of times, the girl showing no signs of stopping as the titan cried out numerous times.

"I'm going to end it!" Nepgear called as she jumped away, a paralysing grenade exploding over CFW Judge. A quick second of silence was spent aiming, a grand amount of energy gathering at the barrel of the gun before a humongous beam shot out, slamming straight through the black giant.

"Damn you!... Tch, that's just getting boring." CFW Judge admitted, brushing off the smallest amount of dust that had gathered upon his being. "Why can't you put on a good fight!? Is that all of the strength you have!?"

"It may be theirs, but it certainly isn't all that's available." Another voice answered, a gravelly tone that spoke of age beyond wisdom. All conscious turned to the tones, a mountain of metal giving a platform to the speaker. Framed by the burning red sky, turning to reveal a shadowed face in the little sun that broke through, a gasp escaped IF as he ran a wrinkled hand through greying hair.

"It's you! You were meant to have disappeared after all of those terrible things you've done!" the agent accused, the elderly man, somewhat short and thin, giving a sigh as he answered.

"What I did, I did in the name of peace… and sanity." He answered darkly, placing a hand behind his back, pulling out a dark buckle that tied around his waist, a yellow belt springing from its sides.

"That's the belt that he used to destroy all of those buildings right?" Compa asked, IF shaking her head slowly.

"No, this is something different… t's something that seems way more powerful than what he used before…!"

"Who are you, mongrel!?" CFW Judge roared as he looked to the newcomer perched upon his mountain of death. "What gives you any idea of you being able to beat me!?" the response was silent, the elderly man scratching at a scraggly weak bear before pulling two more small objects from his back, shaking them thoroughly up and down before his thumbs flicked the tops, turning them like bottle lids.

"I suppose it makes sense… I had once thought it would be Rider no more… and yet here we go again… I hope the transformation is a bit more conspicuous this time!" the elderly man prayed as he gave a small motion of his hands, the two bottles sitting upside down as he thrusted them downward.

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **TANK!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

A quick hand moved the black lever at the side, spinning it quickly before an elderly gaze hardened towards CFW Judge.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Rider once more! Henshin!"

 _ **HAGANE NO MOONSAULT! RABBIT-TANK! YAY!**_

The large wheel upon the right hand side of the belt buckle whirled with every spin of the red handled lever at the side, two smaller silver gears connecting and rotating too. Out of those two gears, a pair of pipes flew out as the rhythmic sounds of metal colliding rung out, forming a strange rectangle around the old man upon the ground. The pipes moved skyward, forming strange pieces in the air, with red in front and blue behind, making various pieces as the elderly man was covered in a black body suit, the two halves in front and behind him coming together upon it to form diagonal strips upon his body.

His left hand was covered in blue armour to contrast the glowing crimson that covered his left. The opposite was true for his legs, with the addition of a white spiral around the red leg, the left. His chest piece was the same, with red being on top and blue underneath, but the helmet, covering a similar pattern was a small bit more interesting. Two compound eyes looked forward, the right in blue and the left in pink, but it was the shape that intrigued. While they both had antenna, the right had it in the shape of a tank barrel, while the other had the ear of a rabbit, a simple eye and nose added to the left eye just for fun.

"Well that wasn't very conspicuous at all!" the man complained, rubbing his hands against his head before turning to CFW Judge. "Anyway, it's time to deal with you. Let's begin the experiment!"

"This will just be a waste of my time! I'll finish you all off!" CFW judge roared, gathering all the energy he had at his disposal. Nepgear, left holding the remains of the sharicite, looked to the jewel, clutching it tightly.

"If I just use the rest of the sharicite's power, then maybe I could…" the girl spoke aloud, closing her eyes as her fist tightened as much as possible. "Please be enough…"

"Argh, my eyes! What is this light!?" the hulking mechanical titan roared, using the weapon in his hand to instead shield his eyes. "My eyes, my eyes, my eyes…!"

"I suppose it's my turn then!" the elderly man growled as he spun the lever of his belt buckle once more, the lights in the silver wheel swapping rapidly between blue and red as it spun, the music featuring the clanging metal returning.

 ** _READY!? GO! VORTEX FINISH! YAY!_**

Leaping into the air at the same time as a tired Nepgear fell to the ground, the twin coloured man launched a single foot forward, revealing the gear upon the bottom of a black boot as he soared through the air, smashing into CFW Judge as he let out a pained grunt.

"You won't be able to escape! Once my retinal systems are back online, I'll kill you all!" the titan of metal promised, writhing in the air.

"Wait, Gear's down!?" IF exclaimed, the elderly man falling down beside them. "This is bad… we won't be able to get the rest of the CPUs either!"

 _"The time has come to withdraw. There's nothing more we can do here."_ Histoire gravely ordered, IF turning to Compa in confidence.

"You heard her Compa! Let's get Gear and get out of this place!" the agent declared, pausing just as a cough came from behind her.

"I believe I'll be coming with you. I don't think this place has any more for me." The elderly man declared as he pulled out the two bottles from his belt buckle, replacing the fancy suit with a rugged dark green waistcoat and a distressed leather overcoat, both seemingly worn by time. It was a testament to the period he had spent in the hell that was the Gamindustri Graveyard, where many met their not at all peaceful end.

It was a moment of great choice for IF. On the one hand, he had just helped increase their chances of escape, but he had also earned a terrifying reputation as the one who had brought the end to many lives, perhaps even being a reason why some turned to Arfoire in the first place.

"…Fine, but you'll have to carry Gear." The agent eventually chose, handing the comatose girl to the elderly man. "By the way, we're going to need a proper name; we can't just keep calling you something like old man."

"…I haven't used my name in a long time." The elderly man wistfully reminisced, running a wrinkled hand through the silver peaks on the top of his head, moving to scratch at the scraggly beard. "Call me Bauen. Kamen rider… build."

They had been walking for a long time, trudging through the various piles of destruction and death. With Bauen leading the way, IF and Compa were left gasping, even without the weight that was Nepgear.

"Oh come on, you can't be tired!" the elderly man scolded, hoisting the girl in his arms better. He couldn't place her over his shoulders, a bandolier who knows how old draped over his left shoulder.

"Sorry… you walk… like this is nothing…" Compa wheezed out, IF looking only a slight bit better.

"I just can't believe that we could only save Gear… Not to mention…" the agent began, her gaze falling to the ground.

"The sharicite shattered to pieces when Ge-Ge used that light…" Compa concluded, looking at the girl in Bauen's hands. "There's no way we can help the CPUs without that…"

 _"There is no reason for you to be so hard on yourselves. Saving Nepgear was a critical achievement in and of its own right."_ Histoire praised. _"You should return to Planeptune with Nepgear and Bauen. I'm sure you can recognise that we all have many questions for you."_

"So you're Histoire hmm?" the man spoke aloud, looking around even as he knew there was no physical origin of the voice. "I suppose answering some questions would be easy enough. Whether you want to hear what happened is a completely different story."

 _"I would appreciate it anyway. Besides, I must learn what transpired three years ago, even if the memories are too painful for you or Nepgear to recall…"_ Histoire confirmed, Bauen giving a small nod.

"Well then you two. Lead the way."

* * *

When Nepgear awoke, she hesitantly rubbed her eyes, the very same hands that had failed her so miserably greeting her. Regardless, she slipped out of her bed in the Basilicom, jumping into her sailor outfit, making sure that the purple and yellow tie was properly secured, before heading out of the door. Making sure that the D-pad hairclip in her long violet strands was placed correctly as she moved, the girl let out a deep breath as she strode through the corridor, pausing when she heard the noises of people.

"Hey Gear! You're finally awake!" IF exclaimed, approaching the girl with a small hug as Nepgear let out a smile.

"G-good morning…" she answered, Compa stepping up behind the brunette.

"You were sleeping for so long, we were getting worried what a relief." The pink haired nurse in training sighed.

"And how do you feel?" Added a third voice, a small pixie like blonde on a floating tome, dressed in a purple piece with what appeared to be a maid's cap resting upon her hea,d wings of light forming upon her back.

"Oh, Histoire. Um, I think I'm fine now. But, um, so… I'm really sorry…" the girl stumbled to get out, bowing her head.

"If anyone should apologise, it is me. I was the one who sent the six of you into the battlefield." Histoire argued, placing a finger to her cheek.

"Huh!? N-no, I could never blame you! It all went south because… I wasn't strong enough…" the sailor dressed girl declared, stopping only at the scoff that sounded behind her.

"Now what's with all of this yapping so early in the morning?" the elderly man from before, Bauen, asked aloud, making a point of exaggerating his yawn. "If you keep saying you're the one who's wrong for one little reason, then we'll all be apologising for the rest of our lives."

"Ah, I'm sor- Um… who are you?" Nepgear asked, a small cry having her cover her mouth before speaking the question.

"Bauen."

"…"

"…"

"Okay then. Now, it may be sudden, but I must ask you to recount what happened back then, what occurred three years ago at the Gamindustri Graveyard." Histoire coughed as soon as it was properly revealed that there was going to be an awkward silence.

"Of course…" Nepgear whispered, closing her eyes. It was certainly not going to be a fun experience.

"What? That's absolutely insane! You're telling me that all of you managed to lose to one single opponent!?" IF questioned indignantly, Compa just as shocked beside her.

"How could ever CPU lose…? That's way too hard to believe…" the nurse in training fretted, hands close to her mouth as she spoke. Sure, she was out of the graveyard, but it was still fresh in her mind.

"Might I ask a question now…?" Nepgear interrupted, meekly holding up a single hand. "What happened to Gamindustri after we fell in battle? You said it's been three years, so…"

"Chaos. Insanity. There are more words to describe it, but I can't be bothered to list them." Compared to the gathered girl's Bauen's tones were harsh, born through time spent in hell and surviving. "There's that little group isn't there, messing about and trying to take over the place."

"Yes, ASIC, under the assumed control of Arfoire." Histoire elaborated, a finger to her cheek in thought. "It already controls much of the world."

"Disc burning, disc copying… even kids now see piracy as normal and have put their faith in it." IF stated, the agent more than aware of the effects of such things. As an agent, she had been sent to break up numerous meetings, but not all gatherings had been spotted and the effects weren't exactly positive.

"In other words, everyone believes in ASIC, so the faith that powers the CPU has grown weak…" Compa concluded, Nepgear giving a soundless nod. It explained why Egi had been defeated so soundly. Without any sort of faith, of shares, his most powerful gashats had been weakened, their effects made useless in the face of such a powerful enemy.

"I'm assuming then that making that sharicite crystal of yours took a very long time?" Bauen interrupted, scratching at his beard again. "If the shares were low, then you couldn't afford to siphon too much away, lest you doom the CPUs by your own hand."

"Well with the CPUs absent from their own nations, it's no surprise. We failed to save them…" shuffling her feet dejectedly, IF grabbed her other sleeve, pulling at it limply.

"We have also come to learn that ASIC's goal is to revive the Deity of Sin." Histoire added, the fairy solemn in her speech. "And at the rate our world appears to be declining, they might very well reach that goal."

"But… isn't there anything we can do to stop them?" Nepgear questioned, leaning forward on the balls of her feet in hope. Perhaps there was a chance to still save her sister; that's what Neptune would say, right? That there's always a way to save the heroes, which will start off your main quest line?

"Yes, there's one way that still exists." Histoire confirmed, floating to meet the eyes of the lilac haired girl. "And that way is you, Nepgear. Along with the other CPUs' younger siblings – your fellow CPU candidates!"

"Wait… me? And I'm not the only CPU candidate?" Bauen had to give a scoff at that, pausing in his little ministrations to the small empty bottle in his hand, turning to Nepgear with the face of a man scolding a child.

"Did you really believe it would just be you? That just Planeptune would have a backup plan in vase their CPU falls?" the old man questioned in return.

"As you know, the CPUs and the CPU candidates are the only ones who are capable of collecting shares." Histoire went on to explain, floating backwards as she went on. "If a sufficient amount of shares are recovered, then Arfoire and ASIC, along with all of those affiliated with them, will weaken."

'They want me to collect shares in my sister's stead?' Nepgear mentally asked, her fingers subconsciously pushing into one another. 'I want to help Neptune… I want to help the world… But… there's no way I can beat such a strong opponent. I don't stand a chance…'

"Is there a chance you could choose something a bit faster? I'm fairly certain ASIC might be able to gather shares faster than you can." Bauen questioned, returning to his tinkering. When he had first pulled it out, he had been naturally questioned on what the odd black rimmed object was meant for, only to be met with secretive silence.

"There's also the fact that… those who probably would've believed in the CPUs know they've lost by now…" Compa added, leaving Histoire deep in thought.

"Well in that case, we could request assistance from the mascots of each nation." The blonde fairy declared, all attention turned to her in confusion.

"Wait, Game mascots?" IF asked, instead turning to the sharp tap of a pacing foot upon the Basilicom's floor, Bauen's arms folded as he moved.

"Born from ancient divinity, they oversee the world in a passive manner, maintaining the balance." The grizzly man slowly explained, turning to Histoire with a curious look. "That is to say, they ensure prosperity in their nation and remain neutral to all else, correct?"

"Yes. When needed, they will stand by the CPUs and rid the world of evil's influence." The oracle of Planeptune confirmed, Compa tilting her head cutely.

"I didn't even know they existed…" the nurse remarked, a short bark escaping Bauen.

"I had to go deep into the history books to find that piece alone out. If you were expecting to find it on the casual internep, then you're clearly wrong." The man stated as he pulled upon his leather jacket, the same beaten affair that he had worn in the graveyard. They had attempted to get him out of it, only for Bauen to pointedly ignore them.

"Indeed, not even I am aware of their precise locations." Histoire declared. "I have been searching tirelessly for where the mascot of Planeptune resides, but to no avail… I will inform you once I find something of note. In the meantime, please regain Planeptune's shares. This will also serve to rehabilitate Nepgear's combat abilities."

"That does make sense. I mean, Gear didn't even move much in the past three years, let alone fight." IF agreed, though her energy faded slightly as Nepgear stood in silence, her eyes as closed to the world as her mind. "Hey, did you hear that Gear?"

"Huh? Oh, um, yes."

"Very well then. Allow me to grant you this." With barely a second's waiting time, a small black gaming device was in Nepgear's hands, glowing with life in a black shell. There were purple buttons on either side, one holding the traditional letter buttons and the other holding the direction pad, though no analogue sticks were included. "This is the N-gear. It houses a variety of different functions that may prove to be invaluable to you."

"Well, I hope you all have fun with that." A small cough had Bauen pausing in his movements, turning to where Histoire, who would no doubt be tapping her foot if she was able to reach the floor, was waiting with her own arms folded.

"And where do you believe you're going?" the blonde questioned, Bauen rolling his arm as he gave an answer.

"Well if I recall correctly, you and many people were the ones who didn't want me to walk the street anymore." The old man answered, ready to walk back into his own given room until two tiny hands gripped onto the back of his coat, the tome floating before his face.

"While that may be so, we still have yet to be able to place a punishment for you in accordance to your actions, namely because you had disappeared by the time any of us would've been able to capture you." Histoire replied, her voice even despite the slight shaking that had overtaken her body. "You went and killed numerous people without ever hesitating, the least you could do is accompany Nepgear and her friends. It's not as if she would be strong enough on her own to oppose you if you did decide to turn on her anyway."

"But with her friends by the side, they would be able to contain me if I did try anything…" Bauen finished, giving a small sigh as he weighed up the choices. It wasn't as if he didn't want to walk the streets, but it was clear what he would have to do if he did go out there. He had already promised to only use it until his job was done and that was until he went into the Gamindustri Graveyard. The fact that he had to jury rig his own belt in order to help the CPUs out was entirely different though…

"I'm assuming you want me to go through some sort of rehabilitation journey and have Nepgear and the other two try and help me out, right?" the old man remarked with a small scoff, jerking his head in the trio's direction, Histoire giving a small sharp nod. "Well, I still don't think it's fair for you to judge me like this even when you don't know the truth of the story, but considering that I'm not feeling like explaining the whole story yet, I suppose I can go with them. I just have on request."

With a firm stride, empty bottle in hand, Bauen did something none of them had been expecting, Nepgear giving a small moan as he jabbed the bottle directly into her stomach, the lid and casing turning lilac as the casing began to warp, finalising as soon as enough liquid had filled it. The man held up the newly remodelled bottle, looking to the front of the lid where the letters G and H were displayed proudly.

"I see, so it's a cog… no, this is the… Gear full bottle."

* * *

 **And for now, that's it! Well, it would be if it weren't for the second chapter ready for you already. What do you think of this start? Like Ex-aid, there's going to be a difference in the way the bottles are collected and I'll be adding in some more, so let's get this story off to a good start!**

 _Super hero time! See you next time ime!_


	2. 2 - the guild quest

**Launch straight into the second! Hello folks, we've got more combat to show you and we can use some more bottles! Unfortunately, I left out the lesbian kiss of power for my own version of the event, so sorry people who wanted to see that. Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: Alove potion? I can't believe you can make something like that, intriguing..._

 _Takumi: Bauen, good luck on your missions! You've got work to do!_

 _Bauen: It's time to whip a girl into shape!_

 _Takumi: Just don't go too hard on her..._

 _B + T: Rider once more! The story beins!_

* * *

"Hello! We'd like to take on some fun work please!" Bauen wasn't exactly used to the greatest of company back within the hells of the Gamindustri Graveyard. Sure, there were times where… his condition, had resulted in him being able to meet a few slightly friendlier faces, but the majority of the time, it was simply those abandoned until they faded away. He was meant to have fallen down the same path, but through sheer determination and technological luck, he was able to simply weather the years, even if they hadn't exactly been the nicest in return. "Oh? Is there anything left?"

"I guess there's only this work order left." IF pointed out, a small notice set upon a holographic board that easily grew upon the blue agent's touch. "'Quest Overview: Defeat the dogoos that are overpopulating Virtua Forest. Reports compiled of travellers being attacked by packs of the monsters at greater numbers that have not been previously reported. Terminate without mercy.' Seems like it should be simple enough."

"Ah yes, the Virtua Forest… tell me, are the monsters there still as weak as ever?" Bauen recalled, the old man rubbing at his chin. There were vague memories of him doing battle there, but anything that challenged him would probably remain within his mind and there was barely anything he could recall that wasn't basic training. "It should be fairly close to Planeptune."

"R-right… but… do you really think I'm ready for this?" Bauen was left to wonder just how Purple Heart had dealt with her younger sister in order to leave her in such a state; Nepgear stood so tenderly as she poked her fingers together, violet eyes locked onto the screen before her displaying the job. A CPU Candidate, someone who was raised to reach similar power to a normal CPU? They should never be facing such a simple challenge with so little confidence – they should be able to eliminate the field with their eyes shut! In response, IF simple placed a hand upon the girl's shoulder, a comforting smile bringing down Nepgear's racing pulse.

"Don't worry about it so much Gear, you'll be fine with us helping you out. We'll make sure that things go off without a hitch." The brunette replied, a pointed glare directed in Bauen's direction. He couldn't exactly fault the girl for doing so as he gave a scoff. "Now come on, let's go and see what we can do."

As they walked, the grey haired man let his fingers mess about with the various bottles within his grasp; there had been very little time for him to test out the various combinations, but this was a chance for him to let loose and go crazy – but it would be a lot more difficult if they had to baby the one who was meant to be the most powerful amongst them. It was a civilian request however, the likelihood of there being a great enough number in order to challenge both Nepgear and himself was far too low to even think of. At least there would be a few other monsters that would undoubtedly get tangled up in the crossfire – they would be his, the girls could deal with the main request.

"Looks like our targets are right ahead. Gear, care to do the honours?" If called out, the only thing that prevented Bauen from walking on without them in a move that would no doubt make him a laughing stock even with his background. "Just remember we're all right behind you."

"Y-yes! I'll do my best!" the purple haired CPU candidate answered, a sword's handle drawn out from wherever she could magically whisk up the thing. No interface, just appearing in her hand; that was just unfair. As soon as her stance was prepared however, the elderly man was more drawn towards the way that a beam launched out of the handle, a sudden stop having the weapon primed to slice away at her enemies.

"Well I suppose it's my turn, isn't it?" both the rabbit and tank shaped bottles found their way into his hands, rugged fingers gripping them tightly as they were rapidly shaken and placed into the driver waiting upon his waist.

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **TANK!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

As IF and Compa prepped their own arms, the pipes that zoomed out of the Build driver on Bauen's waist twisted and turned, a firm foundation formed upon the ground before the two halves of his rider armour were formed and the liquid within solidified. "Henshin!"

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

 _ **HAGANE NO MOONSAULT! RABBIT-TANK! YEAH!**_

The halves slamming down onto his body, Bauen gave a little twist of his neck as he cracked his knuckles. There was barely time for IF to register the hand signal, a sign often used by the guild (and usually _only known by_ the guild) that told her of the direction he was attacking before a red fist smashed into one of the dogoos that threatened to leap towards him, the strike prompting Nepgear to start slicing away.

Once she started off, Nepgear actually proved herself to be incredibly skilled in the art of combat, the girl near dancing around the blue waves that jumped her way. Of course, IF and Compa were doing their job just as well as the others, but they were mere makers; to even think they were on the same level as the one wo was only second to the CPU herself was a foolish act. A thrust had the purple haired girl dashing through the quickly pixelating remains of blue goo, small pants forcing her to stop and finally look back on her handiwork with surprise.

A moment's pause allowed a second pair of pipes form from Bauen's belt, curving around each other before a black handled drill-like sword fell into his hand, a grey drill lined with yellow spikes and tipped with yellow while a dial upon the side flicked causally back and forth. A finger upon the trigger had the drill spinning as it slashed through the monsters that tried attacking him. Tearing through gooey flesh as if it was butter, the elderly rider let out a chuckle as he slammed the weapon down on top of the final dogoo with the drill gouging out a deep hole before the blue creature could even think.

"Now that is how you destroy a dogoo!" the white haired rider laughed out, turning around without a second glance to the dissolving enemies. Flicking the weapon to the side to remove the last vestiges of monster, Bauen turned to where Nepgear was smiling at her sword, a surprised expression coming over her face as IF clapped her upon the back. "I suppose then that the request is dealt with?"

"Yep, it should just be a case of reporting in back at the guild and collecting the reward. No real reason to stick around here." The agent sighed. It was rare for there to be an easy job, seeing as most of the new agents managed to swallow them up while the veterans were trusted with the difficult quests, so this had been more than relatively relaxing for her. Compa however was struggling to catch up with the last of her own horde, running after the rapidly bouncing creature, a misplaced stone had the nurse tripping, letting the dogoo rush over to its friends." Compa! Are you alright!?"

"Damn it girl, move out of the way!" plucking the drill from the top of the handle, a flip and a push had it placed onto the front, a large barrel revealed as trigger pulls sent several bullets into one dogoo that tried to fall on top of IF and Compa, realising the distraction far too late. As a little curse escaped Bauen's mouth, the group could only watch as the horde of dogoos perhaps manageable if they had a chance to split them up suddenly started to flood together, crawling on top of each other as each creature began to lose definition until there was but one giant dogoo towering above them all. "No way of making this any easier then. Better prepare for a second fight."

"Ah, since when could these things combine!?" Nepgear cried out, her laser sword beginning to shake within her grasp as the sight of the king dogoo seemed to grow beyond comprehension. Rushing to her side, there was soon to be a pair of qatars and a giant, needlessly large, needle pointed in its direction though Bauen merely gave a growl as he threw his weapon to the side, two more bottles held within his grasp as he fiercely shook the contents within.

"That's the thing with you lot, always doing the same thing no matter what the situation throws at you. You need to change up your weapons if you want to deal with a bigger challenge." The elderly man stated, his eyes hard as he slammed the bottles of brown and blue into the driver upon his waist. Looking closely, IF let out a small sigh when she couldn't properly make out the symbols moulded into the fronts of the bottles, but it wasn't as if she had to worry – their names were easily revealed soon enough as the first bottles were replaced.

 _ **GORILLA!**_

 _ **ROCKET!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Build up!" as the red and blue rider spun the lever upon the side of his driver, metallic crimson gave way to a light brown while the dark blue upon the other side began to grow lighter. Compa gave a look of awe at the once normal hand that was now clad in a giant fist, a piston poking out the back for extra power, while upon the other hand, armour resembling that of a tried and tested rocket formed. It wasn't like the ones that had proclaimed best match; as the funky music began to play, the two halves seemed to materialise in thin air before slamming down over the prior armour. "Now, let's fly! You lot, keep it distracted upon the ground!"

"Hey, don't order us about!" regardless of her objection, IF was the first to begin shooting, a gun held beneath the agent's flowing blue jacket quickly serving to draw the attention her way, while strange fluids shot towards the monster served to make it begin slipping and sliding without control. The rocket attached to Bauen's right arm served its job, sending the man hurtling to the sky where, holding the massive left fist out, it was a simple task to crash into the king dogoo, smashing through the gooey mess before withdrawing again. "Gear! Cut it up!"

 _ **ROSE!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

At the same time as Nepgear shot forward in a blinding fury of light, the brown arm that once held the strength of a gorilla was suddenly crimson once more, though this time a black vine wound round to form a spiked whip wrapping around the blue king do good as the rocket attached to the other side sent him flying with speeds unheard of. Charging forward, Nepgear's sword was a blur of energy as the lever on Build's driver spun once more, eyes covered in a rocket ship and rose narrowing as power flowed down the line.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX ATTACK!**_

A tough pull of the thorned whip, added to the various slashes that chopped up the king dogoo, had the massive monster cut up beyond recognition. Each piece for a moment morphed back into the original creature before disappearing, a cacophony of cries before the creature had dissipated entirely.

"Phew, that went better that I hoped." IF groaned, letting her arm falling loose. "I haven't had to fire for so long in a while, my arm needs to recover from the recoil."

Bauen however had much more pressing matters, the rider pulling the bottles out of his driver as the two halves that made up his armour dissipated, striding over to the somewhat relieved Nepgear before a firm hand upon her shoulder had her turning to the intense glare sent in her direction.

"... why didn't you go HDD? As a CPU Candidate, you should be able to access that sort of power, it would've made this mission a whole lot easier." The elderly man questioned, the blunt question causing Nepgear to curl inwards, IF pushing the man back with a stern frown.

"Hey, don't bully her! You know full well what she's been through, don't act like you didn't hear her talking!" the agent growled, only stopping at the gentle hand that rested upon her chest, Compa's concerned face having her words die in her mouth.

"Iffy, we managed to get the job done now. Let's go back to the guild and report our win." The nurse in training suggested, IF letting her face contort in confusion for a second. There were very few times where Compa took the lead, so she would be a fool to ignore the innocent face that silently begged. There was only one last glare from the brunette before she stormed in front, Compa prompting Nepgear forward while Bauen brought up the rear, several different theories flying through his mind.

The finishing process was fairly simple fare. Merely a report needed before they were off a little bit richer. The smile had returned to Nepgear's face as she inputted the required details, the holographic interface being the only sort of interaction they needed for such a menial process. It didn't do a thing to reduce the amount of joy the girl felt at having a completed mission under her belt.

"Get the work from the guild, complete the request, file a report and collect the designated reward! Seems simple enough at least." The lilac haired girl sighed out, clutching her earnings close. Nothing too major and nothing that Bauen would really care about missing out on. Nepgear's smile only grew when Compa decided to pat the girl's head.

"Aw, you're such a smart girl Ge-Ge! I am one proud Compa right now!" the pink haired nurse jokingly cooed, tough the CPU Candidate was just soaking it in regardless. There was a mental debate storming in Bauen's mind as to whether the elderly rider should be concerned as to how simplistic stimuli earnt such a response, but his concerns could wait for now. Now was the time to get their leader back up to speed in order to ensure the rescue of the main CPUs was successful.

Quest after quest was completed, Bauen limiting the number of bottles he decided to use for the various mundane tasks the group would have to go through in order to bring up Nepgear's battle experience; he would only need a small combination pool until they really hit the difficult sections and he was gaining all the practice he could desire wiping out the various outside forces that threatened to intervene when they didn't belong. It was then when Histoire suddenly appeared at the Basilicom's door as they returned from a busy trip to and from the guild, the little blonde fairy hovering anxiously before her eyes fell upon the group.

"Ah, perfect timing! I have been fortunate enough to discover the location of Planeptune's mascot." The world tome declared, giving a small cough before she spoke once more. "You may find it out back in the Virtua Forest, for it seems as if the mascot has gone into some sort of hibernation there."

"You would have us return to a locale we have quickly become familiar with? A simple job." Bauen snorted, turning upon his step to proceed onward before pausing when he saw the pale face of Nepgear, something Compa was quick to pick up on.

"Ge-Ge, are you okay? You're starting to look a little too pale for your health…" she remarked, Nepgear letting her head rise in alarm before her features were schooled. Badly, but it was a reasonable enough attempt.

"Oh don't worry about me. I'm fine." The Planeptune CPU Candidate reassured, her steps only mildly shaky as she lead the way out of the basilicom's reception. Following at a distance, Bauen could only watch Nepgear with an unsure stoicism, the rider marching behind with eyes glued to her figure; only Histoire managed to catch the words that were roughly mumbled beneath his breath.

"I'll need to check her level…"

* * *

The journey to the inner depths of the Virtua Forest was a relaxed one, though that didn't mean Bauen was off guard, nor was IF. Though Compa tried her utmost best to keep the mood light with Nepgear, there was just no denying the tension between the agent and the rider.

"So, which way do we go now?" Compa questioned as they found themselves in front of numerous junctions, pathways leading to every direction known to man with no sense of direction whatsoever. "We can't just keep walking forward."

A hand tugging them back had the two girls screaming however, only a flash of white hair visible as the short grizzled man launched himself forward, the monster that was about to chew through the pair of them batted away with difficulty. IF might've complained had it not been for the dark aura that seemed to plague the plant like creatures that ganged up on them, their features growing darker by the second.

"Damnit… Gear, you better hold back. These monsters, they aren't the normal deal." The brunette ordered, Nepgear's sword lowering just slightly from where she had drawn it. "They've gone viral, tainted by the power ASIC now has because of the huge amount of shares they hold."

"Not just that… there's something else about these creatures, can't you see it?" Bauen interrupted, Nepgear straining her eyes in response. While not exactly familiar with viral creatures herself, she had heard rumours of a similar situation much earlier before ASIC managed to get into full power. What she had not been made aware of was the dark particles that seemed to flow off of the monsters' bodies, a foul aura that seemed to show no signs of stopping. "That sort of particulate is not a feature of viral creatures, at least as I know them. The only thing I know that has such an effect on monsters i-!"

But a pre-emptive strike by the creatures had his words die upon his tongue, weapons summoned as they prepared themselves to defend. Had they been normal Tulips, there would barely be anything more than a passing danger, but now infected with the dark powers of Arfoire and perhaps more, there strength grew far greater than it should have. With drill whirring, Bauen slashed away, leaping back as Compa decided to charge in with a yell, the strange fluid residing within her syringe sinking inward.

"It won't change them back, but it will weaken them! Now charge!" Compa cutely yelled, her needle injected another of the plant-like creatures as IF went to town, fire blazing around the edges of her weapons as her body became a tornado of flames. Burning away, there were a few that perished to the fires, but ultimately too many still remained for their liking. Nepgear had been trying her best wherever she could, but it was as if they were multiplying.

"…Multiplying…?" and that was when the lilac haired girl saw it, the strange spores that fell off a felled viral Tulip that differed from the odd dark aura seemingly melting into the ground, it was but a few seconds before more were growing, each quickly gaining the dark tinge that was the power of ASIC. "Goodness! They give off spores when they're defeated, they're multiplying!"

"Then we need to burn the spores as well. Acid, fire, lasers, whatever you've got that will destroy rather than just damage." Bauen called, a bottle of white within his hands being shaken before the drill pulled from it position atop the weapon, the now gun having the bottle plugged into the back as dark energy gathered at the barrel.

 _ **DEVIL!**_

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX BREAK!**_

And then there was hell. Lasers, fire, lightning and acid marred the land, each tulip being drowned in the wave of destruction with no way to multiply meaning their battle was over. Panting, Bauen fumbled about in his pocket rapidly, watching the slivers of gas float upward before being attracted to the plain bottle within his hand, said bottle taking it all in until it could stretch no further.

"Is that bottle like the others? It looks a little big." Compa enquired as the pink haired nurse came around Bauen, the man holding up the item to the light.

"No, it's unpurified. What you have in here is an essence, but without purification it's too diluted to have a clear effect. For all I know, using it in this state could kill me – it definitely would kill any of you." Now that had the girls recoiling as the bottle was neatly tucked away. "But that isn't important right now. Can you see that in the distance? Looks like a person."

"It seems like that person is trying to break something…" Nepgear added, the girl rising to her tiptoes before her expression sudden grew more alarmed. "What the goodness!? Please, stop right there!"

Indeed, slightly obscured by the odd black mouse hood, a grey skinned girl paused in her actions, a pickaxe being rested upon her back as she gave a scowl towards the approaching quartet.

"Huh? Who the hell are you lot? You better stay out of my way or you'll get it!" the green haired girl called out, kicking the strange disc she had been trying her best to shatter back as she raised her pickaxe. "I'm a front line infantry member of ASIC, punks like you have nothing on me!"

"…Front line infantry eh? So your job is to be the cushion for the more important fighters, you're just expendable." Bauen laughed out, a harsh sound that was soon joined by IF's snort.

"You're an underling, that's all you are."

"Definitely an underling."

"Miss underling is an underling alright."

"What!? Where the hell do you think you get off treating me like that!?" the grey girl cried, her arms flapping about inelegantly as IF merely turned a cold shoulder, a move that had Bauen giving a silent moment of respect for. Even in turning away, the brunette still was in a perfect position to defend herself; that spoke of good experience. "Right, I was annoyed when you interrupted my job, but now you've really pissed me off! You'll regret calling me that!"

It was a surprise to the elderly man like everyone else, meaning he wasn't able to begin moving in time to prevent Nepgear from getting beaten about by the pickaxe that was buried within her stomach, the girl sent flying back into IF's arms as the drillcrusher was raised.

"ASIC holds a lot of this place's shares, they're probably powering her up…" Compa deduced, a frown marring her face as she look upon Nepgear's body, the underling letting loose a haughty laugh as she dug her weapon deep into the ground beside her.

"Ha, talk about all bark and no bite, that was barely a challenge. Now, let's kill you one by one, starting with you brat!"

Nepgear shut her eyes as the swing came in her direction, the sound of screeching metal filling her ears. It would take a second for her to realise the screeching metal however was not approaching her, another for her eyes to open enough to witness Bauen standing before her, the smallest of frowns appearing upon his lips as he tried to force his drill forward against the underling's tool.

I don't understand, why are you doing this for me?" The girl breathed out, Bauen finding the strength to give a scoff as he turned his head – not one of his smarter decisions, but he was willing to go along with it. "First it was with the dogoos and now you're doing this… why?"

"Well, for one, Histoire has me doing this little babysitting job and I would be a terrible babysitter if I let you die under my watch." Bauen mused as he forced the underling back, watching as the scantily clad girl reeled back. "There's also the fact that I've failed you, I've failed you incredibly. I'm not going to just sit around and fail you again, not if I have strength in these bones! I know your friends feel the same way."

"Yuck, stop it with the soap opera crap! If you lot want to die spouting off about friendship, then let's get this over with!" the underling declared with her pickaxe in the air, ready to cut down the group where they stood. Nepgear could only watch as Bauen prepared his own stance, IF and Compa moving to be at his side.

'I'm so scared, I can't deny that…' the lilac haired girl muttered in her head. 'But I need to fight… I have to become stronger, or my friends will suffer…'

"You won't hurt them, any of them! I'll beat you down, I swear it!"

"Now that's the sort of leader I expected of Planeptune!" Bauen raucously laughed, the purple gear bottle that had been taken from Nepgear before returning to his hand as he twisted the cap in place, pointing it in the direction of the CPU Candidate. "Now, allow me to kick start your strength. The concept may have changed once it had been extracted from you, but you should still hold a great connection to it…"

The contents within sprinkled upon the newly rejuvenated Nepgear, a questioning expression upon her face before the sudden glow of light hid the shocked visage. As it began to glow, her hair took on a lighter shade, blue eyes suddenly having power symbols within them as a white bodysuit overtook her sailor uniform. As soon as they were materialised, heavy metal shoulder pads slammed down upon her shoulders, beams of pink light moulded themselves into small wings, metal hovered around her hips and a fancy white hairpin locked itself into place. As the purple highlights formed across Nepgear's clothing, a giant version of her laser sword materialised in her hand as the underling was sent crawling backwards at the sight.

"W-wait, you're a CPU!?" the Underling cried out, her weapon suddenly a lot less stable in her grip while she tried her hardest to stand her ground. "D-damn it, this was not what I signed up for!"

"As soon as you signed up for the front lines of ASIC, you should've known this was what you've signed up for." Bauen sighed as he picked up another bottle, shaking the two in his grasp as several different equations began to run through the elderly man's mind. "That's what war is after all."

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **GEAR!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin." Rather than the primed tank of the best match for rabbit, now there was a cog that formed the purple eye on the right side, set within lilac. Along the arm, ridges resembling the teeth of gears ran down the whole length as a near full cog stuck out of the shoulder, while the chest looked to reveal some sort of clockwork machinery, all entirely done in the same lilac colour. "Kamen Rider Build, Rabbit-Gear. Let's go!"

And there was no time for the underling to truly defend herself, for the massive blade that the transformed Nepgear held was already pressing against her own weapon. Whereas before she was struggling against Bauen, this was no contest: the girl blessed with Hard Drive Divinity easily shoved away the scantily clad underling and a second slash had her flying into Build's direction.

Not to be outdone, the man was quick with his footwork, his left leg launching at speeds unheard of in a series of violent strikes against her body. The spring upon his leg served to provide a great boost to the strength, though that didn't mean his punches were any less powerful as the underling could tell – as soon as the fist was drawn back from its painful meeting with her stomach, the rider's arm slashed across the entirety of her body with the teeth of the gears tearing away.

"Back to you Nepgear!" and then with another kick, the underling was flying back towards the CPU Candidate, a smirk appearing upon the white dressed girl as her sword was prepared. She had been fast before, but there was just no describing the speed at which the girl worked, almost dancing around her opponent. There was more to it than aesthetics however, as a scream escaped the underling. She had never been faced with more than menial work, the sort of people she could bully into submission; facing the leader of a landmass and a close fighter was something that she could never have prepared herself for. "And I think it's time to end this!"

 _ **READY? GO!**_

Upon the ground, the underling looked up to where the sudden aura of power began to become more intense, a strange music filling the air as a handle was cranked and the power upon Nepgear's sword began to flicker out of control.

"Damn it, that's so not fair! What's with all of the transformations and stuff, that can't be allowed!" the underling moaned as she struggled to get herself to her feet, deep pants coming out of her as crimson eyes glanced back and forth.

"We'll spare your life, but only if you leave this area in peace. Immediately!" Nepgear ordered with authority, a new side of the often timid girl that had not been seen in a while.

"'Oh yes ma'am, than you so much for your mercy!'… If you think I'm going to just quit the job I've been given because I was asked not to, get your head out of your arse! I've got work and something like this is not going to stop me." The underling spat out, an intense look of hatred appearing within her face. With all of the power left in her body, the girl darted away, perhaps a good thing in many situations, but considering the direction she was heading in, Bauen could only leap into the air with as much haste as possible.

 _ **VORTEX ATTACK!**_

But as the foot slammed into her side, the underling had already achieved her aim of bringing down her tool upon the disc left upon the ground, the sound of shattering filling the space left by the absence of battle.

'Darn it Bauen, you had to be a second too slow! Idiot!'

"Well… looks like I'm all done here. Next up, Lastation's mascot…" the underling breathed out. There was no one there, even with the underling's brutalised body, that didn't recognise the fact that she had been the victor in this situation as she made her dash away, somehow still able to build up enough speed to outrun IF while the two faster fighters looked to the remains of Planeptune's mascot.

"The mascot… it doesn't look like we can do anything here…" Nepgear lamented, looking to the shattered pieces, Bauen removing the two bottles from his driver as the suit dissolved off his body.

"We did all we could. I should've been more careful." Bauen stated, only looking up from his self-evaluation when a sudden gasp of awe escaped Compa.

"Worry not CPU Candidate, brave warrior. Though I am surprised to find my body destroyed in my sleep, there is little need for you to worry." A soothing voice calmed, an orb of light floating from the remains to…'face' the two fighters. "To say that I am okay is perhaps a stretch, but fortunately, I was able to separate some of my power from my now destroyed body. I will grant what power I have left to you."

"Is it truly safe for you to sacrifice some of your power in this state Miss mascot?" Bauen pointed out, looking to the orb floating before his eyes with unbridled curiosity. "After all, the majority of your power has been taken with the shattered body, can you afford to do this?"

"Do not worry brave warrior. I am more than willing to take any risk in the name of Planeptune and I am certain that you two are worthy of such a gift." The mascot of Planeptune assured, a light gently hovering over to Nepgear before it was absorbed into her flesh. "If you would, could you please bring forth one of those strange bottles that you use? I am certain that I could gift you with something that may work with it."

"Goodness, so this is the power of the nation's mascot…" Nepgear mused, a hand reaching to her chest where the light had entered while Bauen brought out a bottle to capture his own light. "It's almost as if there's a whole new level of power flowing through my veins…"

"CPU Candidate, brave warrior – I have no way of knowing what has transpired since I began my long slumber… but I have faith that the two of you shall put the power I gift to you to good use. Please, prove me correct."

And with that, the orb disappeared, just as Bauen had predicted. With two bottles now ready to be purified, Bauen let a satisfied salute out to the sky. The bottle filled with the power provided by the mascot would be far easier to purify than the essence of the monsters, not immediately ready as it would've been had he extracted it straight from a person, but still much easier.

"Thank goodness we actually managed to do what we can. I have you to thank Bauen." Nepgear stated, turning to where the man gave a deep bow.

"I have said it once, and I'll say it again. What I did, I did in the name of peace and sanity. That does not mean I do not feel regret for what I've done and any way in which I may repay my debt, I shall seize with haste." The white haired rider intoned, pulling his bandolier tighter around him. as soon as he had the new bottles purified, they would find their place upon it; the effect of having the bottles were somewhat diminished, in the man's eyes at least, when there weren't enough bottles to fill the various holders. "Now, we should find our way back to Histoire. I'll need to purify these bottles as fast as possible."

And thus they began to leave, picking up the majority of remnants of the mascot in hopes that any left would not be found my some other bad guy; who knows how much power still remains in even the smallest of missed shards? Looking from the corner of his eye, Bauen let himself fall back as IF, Compa and a now normal Nepgear talked, fully aware of the brunette's attempts to look back.

'They are innocent, yet they are at the front of a war. They do not deserve to be here.' Bauen mentally remarked, his brow furrowing as he looked upon them all. 'IF seems to have improved her impression of me, but it is understandable that she still holds concerns over my presence. After all, I've done unforgivable things."

And as he let his eyes close, he heard the screams of people, innocent people, he heard monsters as they rampaged freely, monsters that were destroying everything in their path, he heard people who were fighting like monsters, barely a sane thought in their mind. Gamindustri had seen monsters before, but when they were faced with a veritable army of their own that was acting in a similar manner, all ability to fight left their body; killing monsters was one thing, trying to defeat their own was another.

IF didn't want to look like she was watching the man too closely, but when she heard the mutter that passed beneath his voice, almost silent, she let herself finally feel a bit bad for the man.

"I was the one who let this happen; I'll be the one who'll fix it. No one else."

* * *

 **And we stop here for now! Obviously, you can't have a sky wall separating the different nations here because they aren't connected in the first place, so I decided to implement things in a different way. By the way, if you need help visualising Bauen, think of the war Doctor from Doctor who.**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	3. 3 - the Lastation adventure

**Greetings friends, we're back with a smile! There's something I need to state here because I forgot to do it before hand: like in the normal Neptunia series, this isn't happening in the same dimension, but one with similar circumstances meaning that there will be differences in how things have played out. At least both build and Neptunia did it; otherwise, Build would have to explain why none of the previous Kamen Rider's made any mention about a giant wall splitting the entirety of Japan. Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!  
_

 _Bauen: Power up the robot and fight! You need resolve to survive this..._

 _Lilith: Bauen, you're going on a trip to Lastation! What will you find?_

 _Bauen: Maybe I should create my own robot... I'll call it a... 'guardian', that sounds nice._

 _Lilith: Well, Lastation could definitely help you out there!_

 _B + L: Rider once more! Don't forget me!_

* * *

"It appears that you did manage to successfully secure the mascots power, that is fortunate. The fact that ASIC and those who work under their name are now purposely searching the mascots out in order to destroy them however is most troubling…" Histoire mumbled, the tome flying back and forth with her finger to her chin deep in thought.

"Miss Underling said she was going to take a trip to Lastation next too." Compa added in. "We need to make sure the mascot there doesn't get hurt like the Planeptune mascot."

"If we don't move quickly, she'll end up getting there before us again! We can't let her wreak havoc when the Leader of Lastation probably doesn't even know about the threat!" Nepgear stated firmly, a fire in her eyes that had the blonde tome smiling, a look to where Bauen was tinkering with some sort of strange tool of sorts at the side being all she needed to understand who the one responsible for such a change in perspective was.

"It's reassuring to see Nepgear's passion so brightly lit." Histoire remarked before her face grew more solidly serious. "Now, I suggest you act as you said and make it Lastation with haste. Regain the shares and seek out the mascots. There will be CPU Candidates like Nepgear in both Lastation and Lowee; I recommend you seek out their aid as soon as possible on your journey as well."

"That would make them Noire and Blanc's younger sisters…!" Compa realised after a moment's silence, the nurse bubbling upon the spot at the thought. Bauen, a brief pause taken from his actions however, took far more notice of Nepgear, whose smile grew by the second.

"CPU Candidates… girls just like me…"

"No doubt that there will be issues within their own nations. More than likely, they will refuse our first request for their assistance." Bauen explained, stepping further into the conversation as he threw the item in his hand up and down casually. "Just like you Nepgear, their greatest desire will probably be the rescue of their sisters. Histoire, as you requested."

The tome struggled to catch the thrown piece even with Bauen's relatively light toss, IF approaching to see the black holder like object that was now in the grasp of Histoire. A silver button shone at the side – it very much reminded her of something, but the agent just couldn't remember what…

"My apologies, but Bauen has been fixing this up for me." The fair explained, holding the slot out to IF. "This is a replica of something a tool that Game Heart himself has made extensive use of, though it has taken me much effort in order to have it even partially recreated. It is only through the actions of Bauen that it has been completed. IF, I am certain he would want you to use this."

"Me? Why would Game Heart want me to use this?" the brunette wondered aloud, though took the item nevertheless into her hands. "Wouldn't Nepgear be a better choice seeing as she's the CPU Candidate?"

"I had believed that too, but it was only upon receiving the second half of his gift when things started to make a bit more sense." Histoire clarified, a second flash having a strange yellow cartridge of sorts within her hands. With a textured white section sticking up from the top, a black button right at the back and a moulded grip of yellow, it was most certainly a very strange object to be seen. If you had been privy to Game heart when he was fighting however or even knew the public information released about his abilities, then there was no denying just how priceless of a gift this truly was. "The Bakusou Bike Gashat. By using this gashat in the Kimewaza slot holder, you will be able to call upon Game Heart's very own vehicle."

A sharp gasp escaped Nepgear at the claim, her eyes going slightly cloudy as Compa approached in concern.

"Ge-Ge? Are you okay? You didn't look so good for a second there…" the nurse in training enquired, a shake of her head having Nepgear slightly clearer minded.

"No, I'm alright." The purple haired girl clarified. "It's just, I remember when Game Heart gave you that Histoire. It was the meeting I had been invited too, before all of this began…"

* * *

 _The CPUs were gathered n Planeptune's Basilicom, Nepgear watching in the background as her older sister and the different nation leaders along with Histoire discussed their battle strategy. There were very few times where she had seen her sister be so serious outside of her HDD form, but right now, Neptune was perhaps the most stoic of them all._

" _There's no denying that the enemy we're about to face is the real deal. I hope that we can actually beat them…" Egi Yuuno, a paediatrician who became the Lord Game Heart of Genmeer when he called upon the power of video games himself. He had been a key factor in the uniting of the different goddesses, both through his trade and his actions – he cared little for the console war, only wishing to bring smiles to the faces of many. That resolve had eventually swayed even the hardest of hearts to his side and was the main reason why Genmeer was so prosperous despite being born so late in comparison to the others. Black haired, clad in red jeans, a yellow shirt and a doctor's jacket, the man gave little impression of being a leader. Then again, the majority of the CPUs followed a similar idea._

" _Come on Egi, you got your game gashat things and we have our Hard Drive Divinities!" Neptune attempted to announce cheerfully, though it was clear from the way her smile twitched that it was at least somewhat forced. "We'll do our best – nobody can beat our best when we're all working together as a team."_

" _We've been losing shares though, and fast." Noire couldn't help but point out, the goddess of Lastation folding her arms in thought. "There's no doubt that ASIC will be more powerful while we've been weakened."_

" _It's not as if we can do anything else in this situation. We leave them alone and we'll be wrecked in a different way, at least by attacking we have a chance of actually dealing with the threat." Blanc declared the short brunette puffing out her cheeks at the thought._

" _Though it may pose a great risk to us, it poses a far more devastating threat to our people." Vert added, the blonde twirling a bunch of her hair between her fingers. While it may have passed off as a casual act in any other situation, it was clear that the nerves were beginning to take prominent effect upon the leader of Lastation. "Our choice has been made."_

 _Noire didn't want to see a world like that, but with four others already unable to find anything else, even the black haired goddess had to let out a sigh. There was just no escaping the fact that they would have to do their best and hope, even in the situation was piled heavily against them._

" _Girls… I'm glad to have people like you at my side! We'll clear this boss battle with no continues!" Egi declared, his fist rising to the air where it was met by four others with their resounding cheers. Turning to Histoire, the man fumbled about in the pockets of his doctor's jacket, a broken item and the yellow gashat being placed into her confused hands. "Histoire, I need you to hold on to these and make sure that Planeptune girl, IF, gets her hands on them when the slot holder's fixed."_

" _IF? Why would you want IF specifically to have these?" Histoire questioned, the doctor letting a dull smile appear upon his lips. "I was unaware that you had any prior relationship with her, even as an agent of the guild."_

" _No, I can't say I have." Egi easily admitted, the man rubbing the back of his neck with a weak chuckle. "But there are some names I can find in my memories, images of people I fought with that I have never met before – not that I can properly remember that is. If I know her name however, and I have seen that she is a good, honest girl, then I know that this will be in safe hands. Won't you grant me my request, Histoire?"_

* * *

"Its damaged state meant that I was unable to restore its original colour, but it should perform admirably. Simply activate the gashat by pressing its button and then place it within the slot. You can hold the slot to your side and it should also attach." Bauen instructed, the agent hesitantly placing the black piece and watched in awe as it wrapped around her, the slot held in place. Holding up the yellow gashat, IF took a look to the front, the image of a man racing beneath the title being bright and vivid as she pressed down upon the black button.

 _ **BAKUSOU BIKE!**_

 _ **GASHAT!**_

A wave of yellow pixels began to flow out from where IF stood, a giant screen appearing behind her to display a similar image of the man racing down some sort of track upon the yellow bike, the gashat in the slot holder lighting it up in yellow. What they did not expect to come from the game screen however was the exact same motorbike as shown upon the image, the loud revving of an engine filling the basilicom's air as it thudded down beside the agent.

With a body of yellow and black, there were two panels upon both sides that displayed four buttons like circles of red, yellow, green and blue while a pink strike of spikes above the goggle shaped headlights gave the impression of the Mohawk moulded into the rider's helmet in the game's screen. A sound of awe escaped IF as she ran her hand along the body, straddling the bike with a grin as she watched in roar in response.

"This is amazing! With this, we can get to Lastation super-fast!" the brunette declared, a manic smile simply plastered onto her face as she invited both Nepgear and Compa on, a look of surprise appearing upon her lips. "Huh, looks like it won't fit us all after all."

"Do not fret IF. I believe I have an alternative that will function quite nicely." Bauen reassured, a strange phone like contraption pulled out of his pocket. A yellow bottle being placed into the back had a small wheel poking out of the phone's top, though a toss in the air had things folding, unfolding and growing until a sleek red bike, patterned with black was stood beside the yellow equivalent. With the bottle placed into its back growing as well, the front held a silver gear with a screen right between the handlebars. Pressing a single button upon that screen, Bauen held his hands out as a helmet materialised out of thin air, the straps quickly tied around his head as the elderly man too straddled his own machine. "I've been doing a little bit of tinkering beyond just the slot holder you know. Now come, it's time for us to set off!"

And with a push of his foot, the bike was off, IF letting out a little cry before she too was trying to milk the motorbike for all it was capable of, the dull roar of engines still heard for a while before it finally faded away with distance. Histoire couldn't help the sight that escaped her, but as she turned to see the surprised people recollecting themselves after the sudden passing of vehicles, there was only one way she could even possibly think of reacting to the situation.

"While I'm all for them showing initiative, I would like to believe they could behave in a manner more appropriate. They could've at least gone outside before riding motorbikes…"

* * *

"Wow, Lastation is chock full of different gadgets and machinery!" Nepgear gasped as the pair of motorcycles blasted their way down the road. Compared to Planeptune's sleek design, the majority of the land of Black Regality was far more industrialised and undisguised, machinery of all different purposes and designs littering the landscape. It did little to detract from the magnificent sight, even enhancing it in the eyes of some people, but there was no denying that it was a little less refined in comparison. "This is my first time coming here, I've only heard the stories Neptune would tell me. She'd bring me back baggies of gears whenever she decided to visit… This place just looks like so much fun for tinkering! It'd be great if we could look around a tiny bit!"

"Watch yourself girl, we have a more pressing issue to deal with right now. You can have a look once we've done our job." Bauen instructed, his orders trying their best to be heard over the sound of two engines duelling with one another, Nepgear startling as she slapped her cheeks.

"Y-yeah, right! We have to do our best, otherwise Lastation will be in danger… must. Not. Window shop." The lilac haired girl muttered to herself, a focused glint entering her eyes as a sigh escaped the older rider. Whatever helped the girl keep her mind upon the mission he supposed.

"Iffy, what sort of leads do you have?" Compa enquired, the girl's grip tightening as the two motorbikes suddenly screeched to a halt, the impressive building before them glowing in the sunlight as the agent pulled off her helmet.

"Well, standard fare to be honest. We go to the guild and gather what Intel we can, clearing out some quests in order to build the shares back up along the way." IF instructed, the group heading into a surprisingly quiet Basilicom. "Odd, I would've thought there'd be a little more foot traffic than this at least… The only answer could be that ASIC has this place under a pretty tight control."

"Hopefully the information we can get is still right though." Compa added, the girl taking IF by the hand and leading the now spluttering girl in whatever direction the nurse in training thought was the correct one, leaving Nepgear and Bauen to look at each other with the same eyes.

"Well, there is little point to us simply standing here. Let us accept some quests while they deal with the information." The white haired man declared, rubbing his hands together as the pair moved over to where a man was busying himself behind the desk; while quite a few elements were shared between the different guild branches, differences such as the choice between automated or human systems for quests were still present.

"Excuse me, I'd like to see what quests are available please."

"Excuse me, I'd like to see what quests are available please."

Nepgear turned to the black haired girl that was looking directly back at her with crimson eyes, two black hair ties keeping a wavy style in place. A black dress lined with milky blue clung to her body, a belt piece with a bow upon the back and a large white lined circle to connect the dress to her collar added. With long fingerless gloves of a similar black as well as short boots, it was hard to see the girl taking on such difficult and dangerous work; the same could be said for the goddesses however, Bauen mused in his head.

"Oh, are you two here to take on a couple of quests too?" the black haired girl asked with a knowing smile, Bauen watching as Nepgear began to flounder with her words.

"Huh? Oh, er, yes! We are, that's right!" the purple haired girl eventually spat out, her nervous nature managing to break through the confidence she had managed to build as Bauen raked a hand across his face. If meeting a new person was all that was needed to break her, then it would be one hell of a time trying to keep her in a form fit to lead a nation. The girl must've noticed his reaction, s giggle escaping her as she placed her hand before her lips.

"Oh, I get it. You're taking her out on her first missions, right? You don't exactly look like a direct father though…" the girl mused, her fingers stroking her chin as she leant forward, a glimmer of light entering her eyes as the hand moving upon her chin smacked her palm. "I know! You're her uncle who's taking over for a day!"

"Not quite right young miss. If I was, I'd probably have made Nepgear here hold a bit more confidence before she tackled the big wide world." Bauen explained with a chuckle, his hand clapping Nepgear's back. "And if I was your uncle, I would probably teach you not to just jump to conclusion. Making impulsive decisions can get you killed on the battlefield and when you look like that…"

"Hey, I'll have you know that I'm an exceptional exception! You have no idea how tough I am!" the black haired girl countered, her face fierce before it softened once more for a second as her head drooped slightly. "But I need to get stronger, so I can… Nevermind. Why are you two looking for a quest here anyway?"

"I want to regain the shares lost by the nation and hopefully help people out along the way." Nepgear answered honestly and Bauen was sort of split. On the one hand, such honesty was likely to be a boon in certain situations, but it could also lead to some answers being spilled that they didn't want being known.

"Wow, aren't we serious? That speech makes you sound like some sort of goody two shoes honours student." The black haired girl remarked, flipping her hair back in place with an impish smile. The response had Nepgear lost for words once more, her body retreating into itself as whatever remained of Nepgear's prior confidence melted away like hot snow.

"Wh-what the goodness is wrong with being serious about a serious problem!?" the CPU Candidate of Planeptune cried out, only Bauen's hand upon her shoulders preventing her from crying out. Turning the girl to properly face her, a light slap upon her cheek had the girl back in her proper senses. Of course, what constituted a light slap to Bauen had Nepgear nursing her cheek for a moment.

"Ha-ha! Sorry, sorry. I haven't had the chance to talk to a girl my age in a while, that's all." The black haired girl waved off, though she wasn't prepared for the light chop that had her clutching her head with a moan. "Hey old man, what was that for!?"

"For nearly bringing someone you didn't know to tear in a few minutes of talking to them." Bauen answered back, his own smile taking over the stern frown he was meant to hold.

"Come to think of it, it's been a while since I… no, I've never had the chance to meet a girl my age actually. Everyone's usually older than me…" Nepgear's plight did make sense. Thanks to her status, there was rarely a time where she was allowed outside of the Basilicom and with her toys being brought by her sister whenever she couldn't order them over the internep, there was little desire from her to save for seeing the world's sights.

"Is that true huh? Well, my name's Uni. What's yours then?" the girl finally introduced herself, a little joking curtsey given to Nepgear who, in her slight confusion, decided to give one in return.

"My name's Nepgear! And this is Bauen. Hopefully we can become friends Uni." Nepgear cheerfully answered, the other girl giving a jaunty nod in response.

"Nepgear and Bauen huh? All right then Nepgear, Bauen! Since we're all acquainted now, why don't we team up and complete a quest together?" Uni suggested, clasping her hands behind her back as she leant forward with a grin. "I almost always do this stuff alone, so it might be a good change of pace to try working with someone else."

"A sound explanation. I see no reason why we shouldn't in that case." Bauen suggested, Nepgear nodding eagerly by his side. "Why don't you two choose which mission we're going to do together? I'll inform If and Compa about our new companion."

Needless to say, while they were a little surprised at the fact that Nepgear had already managed to find a new friend within Lastation, neither one of them were truly all that bothered by the new presence.

"Oh, so you have a whole group with you huh?" Uni mused as Bauen brought IF and Compa over to the front desk. "I guess I should've expected that. I mean, those arms of yours are like, paper thin." There was barely a second before Nepgear was clutching her arms, pulling at her skin with a desolate expression as Bauen could only rub his palm against his face.

"N-nuh-uh! I'm not weak… Well, okay, maybe a little but…" Nepgear admitted, her fingers pushing together as her hair threw shadows over her eyes, almost as if a raincloud had started to form above her head.

"Yeah, yeah, enough already." IF was quick to interject, the agent's hand falling upon the CPU Candidate's shoulder. "We don't need you starting all of that self-depreciating nonsense again."

"Well with this many people, any quest we take will be a joke. Why don't we get this over with quick?" Uni cheered, her enthusiasm infectious as they marched forth with Bauen trying his best in order to keep up. What they didn't notice however was the pale girl hiding upon the side, a growl escaping her ash she exited her little hiding place.

"Tch, so they already made it here? At this rate, they'll totally be getting in my way…" the underling muttered, her fist tightening as crimson eyes remained locked upon their targets. "Fine, it just means I have the chance to finish them off for good this time! I'll do it before they even know what hit 'em."

* * *

 _ **DRILLCRUSHER!**_

While there were times where IF had utilised handguns and Compa used her needle in order to spray whatever ridiculous concoction lay within its casing, there were very few fighters who would directly utilise firearms in their more primitive form. Usually, they were implemented into some sort of other weapon like Bauen and the drillcrusher or forgone entirely and yet, standing back to back with Uni, the elderly rider couldn't have failed to notice the signature click of a traditional gun slide behind him.

"Well, I wasn't expecting something like that to be the tool you chose to use Uni." Bauen commented as lasers shot forth, obliterating a few of the Babyvaders that tried to tackle their group. It was a simple elimination quest originally chosen because of the limits that Uni thought the group had meaning that save for the sheer number they were being tasked with defeating, there was very little substance to the quest. "Normally people of your size choose a different form of attack. Ones which hold a bit more flair to them."

"Guns are totally awesome, they're cool enough for me!" the black haired girl answered, linking her arm around the older man's as she aimed her weapon. He had seen another use this technique before, so there was no need for prompting as he rapidly began to spin on the spot, bullets shooting down several enemies in a few blasts. Unlike Bauen, it took the girl a couple of bullets to take down a single enemy, something that she was clearly unhappy with as Nepgear's blade claimed the last opponent needed. "That should be it right? What did I tell you, easy or what?"

"That was done so quickly… Uni, you really are strong!" Nepgear praised, the black haired shooter startling for a second before the brightest grin possible appeared upon her face, a toss of her hair having her appear as smug as one could be.

"Well, the same goes for you Nepgear. You were better than I thought." Uni answered, a haughty laugh escaping her lips as she winked in the lilac haired girl's direction. "Nowhere near a proper match for me, but it was a good attempt at least."

"Aw, you're flattering me."

"They've already become such close friends, haven't they?" Compa remarked with a smile from the side lines, the pink haired nurse in training stabbing her needle in the ground as IF rolled her shoulders and head.

"Looks that way. After all, isn't this the first time we've seen her genuinely smile since we first rescued her?" IF responded, Bauen moving over to the pair once he was certain the perimeter was safe. "I'm almost jealous of how quickly they managed to gel."

"There's no need to be jealous. After all, kids will be kids; they'll always respond better to those their own age than their seniors." The white haired rider sagely mused, the slight darkness that entered his sight rapidly disappearing. "Let them have their bond. It is a precious thing."

The drillcrusher remained in its gun form, meaning it was a simple task for the rider to spin round and let loose with a shot, a yelp coming from the approaching person as they tried their hardest to regain their footing. As soon as the underling was revealed, weapons were prepared, Nepgear and Uni turning around with a surprised look as the former of the two brought a hand to her face.

"Oi, the hell do you lot think you're doing having a picnic in the middle of a dungeon!?" the underling cried out, the shaft of her weapon sitting upon her shoulders. "Don't you know these places are off limits at the moment? ASIC has important business to do here!"

"That stance… she isn't going to attack." Bauen realised as he lowered his weapon, Compa and IF turning to him in confusion before the sound of an explosion smothered their cries. As the dust settled, Uni and Nepgear let out a cry at the three bodies steaming upon the ground, the underling's laughter ringing out.

"They didn't even see it coming!" She cackled, lifting her pickaxe off her back with a manic grin. "And now that we've got the chaperones out of the way, you stupid brats are next!"

"Well, who's this? Uni enquired with lips tightened into a fierce frown, her movements almost mechanical as she pulled back the slide to chamber her next round. "If she's willing to set an explosive trap, I doubt she's any one good."

"Um, I think her name was Underling. She's one of ASIC's low ranking cannon fodder." Nepgear recalled, the sound of mad stomping coming from an irate underling.

"Oi, I thought I told you to quit calling me that!" she screamed out, the pale girl kicking the ground in frustration. "Damn it, now you really made me mad! It's time for you to die!"

"ASIC huh? Don't worry Nepgear, I've got this. You can stay back for now." Uni reassured, but the lilac haired girl's feet remained planted firmly in the ground as she merely shook her head, the beam of her sword shooting out as the underling gave a scoff.

"You might've caught me off guard last time, but this time I'm gonna beat you guys to a- OW!"

"Word of advice… never… turn your back on someone… with a gun!" trying his hardest to crawl to his feet, the old man clutched the drillcrusher tightly within his grip, the smoking barrel giving little doubt over what had just happened. It was that momentary distraction that allowed Nepgear to let out a fierce battle cry, energy and binary surrounding her before the brilliant form of Purple Sister stood proudly in her place. The second beam however was not at all expected, the girl that appeared from within standing tall.

The black dress that had once clung tightly now took the form of a bodysuit, fingerless gloves covering the digits and growing to encompass all the way up the middle of her arms. The short boots took on a more technological form, having crawled up to cover all the way up to her thighs with the biggest transformation being white hair that sat in twin drills rather than the wave of black prior.

"Y-you're kidding me man, you are kidding me!" the underling moaned, her weapon dropping limp by her side as she gaped at the sight. "This is absolute bull! Damn it, here I come!"

Bauen, picking himself up with heavy breaths, could only stand at the side as the underling launched forward, Nepgear dashing forward to meet her charge while Uni held back. Where once a perfectly normal rifle was held, a massive rail cannon took its place. With a second spent aiming, a grand blast was sent in the underling's direction, her look of alarm being all she could get out before s he was near swallowed whole. It was only thanks to her resilience that she remained upon her feet so she could clash against the laser blade that smashed against the shaft of her pickaxe, the struggle upon her visage unmatched by the Purple Sister.

"Okay… I should have…" fumbling about with the different bottles within his care, Bauen finally let out a sigh of relief when his hands found their way around the moulded form of a stethoscope. Pulling it into his grasp with all of his energy, the man plugged it into the back of his gun, looking to where Compa and IF were out cold before he aimed the barrel skyward and pulled.

 _ **DOCTOR!**_

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX BREAK!**_

Unlike other shots, the beam that fired upward began to split apart near as soon as it exited the barrel, the different streams raining down upon the trio. With a groan, they finally managed to get themselves to their feet, shoulders popping and weapons collected as both IF and Compa let a frown take over their faces.

"Right, now I'm a little mad." Bauen growled as two different bottles found their way into his hands, the rhythmic sound of shaking liquids filling the air as Purple Sister batted the underling away, the side of Uni's weapon blocking her movement in the most painful way possible. "And when I'm mad… I want to do something like this."

 _ **DEVIL!**_

 _ **CHESS!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **AKU NO CHECKMATE! DEVIL-CHESS! YEAH!**_

As the two frames collided and fused the black and white halves into Kamen Rider Build's armour, the man immediately shot forward, the dark aura wrapping around the black right fist smashing into the underling's back before she could even think of dodging it. A foot smashing her forward was quick to follow as Nepgear started a mad flurry of slashes alongside IF as the underling tried valiantly to defend herself. Compa by the side was shooting her fluid whenever she had the chance, the last shot coinciding with Nepgear and IF's final slash. The underling scrambled backwards as she tried to avoid the final strike, but the rhythmic music that came with a lever cranking spoke of her fate.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

Surrounded by swirling darkness, Bauen leapt into the air as Nepgear shot backwards, the underling only able to look to her two sides as she realised her predicament. There was no time to do anything about it however as the parabolic line trapped her in place, Kamen Rider Build soaring downwards as Purple sister became a blur of light. Passing by each other, Bauen regained his footing as Nepgear came to as stop, the graph fading from sight as the underling looked to her relatively unharmed body in confusion.

"…Huh, looks like you didn't even scra-ARGH!" a series of explosions and slices cut off her words as the underling was sent flying away, the girl scrambling to her feet as she limped away as fast as she could. Letting out a sigh, Nepgear turned with a grin to where Uni stood, only to let out a cry as she dodged a beam of pure energy. Feeling the small section of her side where the CPU Candidate still managed to get clipped, it would take moment for her to realise the true target, IF and Compa standing defensively before where Bauen was lowering now smouldering arms.

"It's you! You're the one who ended up killing them!" the Black sister growled, the massive railgun pointed directly towards him, only to be tugged to meet Nepgear's face when the girl attempted to approach. "Did you know about this man!?"

"Uni? I know he's done something in the past, but now he's helping us rescue the CPUs – our sisters! There's no need to attack him!" Nepgear objected, reeling back when the gun was thrusted further towards her face. "Uni?"

"You went with them didn't you? Why are you here and not my sister?" the Black Sister growled, green eyes moving downward as her words became barely more than a whisper. "She didn't let me come along with her three years ago… but I could've saved her if I went, I could've saved them all! I could've done what you failed to do! Now you're hanging around with murderers!?"

"Murderers? I thought he only destroyed some buildings…?" the CPU Candidate's eyes turned to where Bauen let out a sigh, dusting off the smoke that still lingered upon his armour. Her voice was but a little louder than the breeze as she mumbled, "Bauen?"

"…You have them, don't you? One? Both of them?" the man prompted, Compa looking to him confusion while IF kept her eyes trained upon Uni. Histoire had decided to place her trust within him at this point and he had yet to make a threatening move against any of them; he could at least be somewhat trusted even if he kept some secrets that the agent was rather keen to hear. In response, Uni brought a hand from behind her back, the nurse in training squinting to see the item held within delicate fingers.

"A… toy jet?" Compa voiced. It was a black winged vehicle of red, blue windows painted upon the front and with what appeared to be a top hat upon the top – though closer inspection revealed it to be a dial of sorts. "What does Bauen have to do with a toy jet?"

"A dial fighter – the red dial fighter. That's its proper name." Bauen corrected, the man's fists tightening as his gaze remained upon the item behind the black and white compound eyes. "It belonged to a very wonderful man; one of the greatest men you could've ever met even if he did have a tendency to act a bit flighty at times…"

"Did… could have… you…?" Nepgear breathed, the dots finally connecting as Uni brushed off the dirt that marred the dial fighter's body while Bauen diverted his gaze. "No… Bauen…"

"You Nepgear, you left our sisters to die and ran away like a coward." Uni scowled, tucking the dial fighter back into her inventory. "But the black armoured fighter who used bottles to construct different powers? He ended up killing two of the best fighters to ever come out of Lastation! He killed the people who were meant to be his best friends in cold blood and didn't end up paying any sort of retribution for it!"

"Do you really believe that I didn't pay any sort of retribution for it? That I sat happily within the Gamindustri Graveyard patting myself upon the back?" Bauen answered back, but it was clear his words held less power than they did before, the tip of Uni's railgun begin to steam as light slowly grew in intensity.

"Fine then! Even if one CPU Candidate doesn't want to punish you for your crimes… I will!"

* * *

 **Next time, we're going to start with a flashback; you've been warned! Yes, in Mightydimension, I made reference to the Kyurangers through a gashat, but Lupinranger VS. Patranger? I have something special in mind for you. hopefully, this chapter will give you a hint as to what happened all that time ago, but I'd like to start a little bit before that next chapter... keep your eyes peeled!**

 **Also, I haven't been able to really take a break between all of my work, which is why my stories have been updated less, less frequently. I'm sorry for not responding to PMs like I used to - you know who I'm talking to, you two.**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	4. 4 - the Candidate battle

**Hello again friends. Starting off with a flashback to many years ago and then, it's time for a fight! This flashback told story will hopefully be spread out over the course of the chapters until we reach a certain point, so hopefully it isn't too easy to tell how this goes down, otherwise this is going to be boring. Something I wanted to talk about is 5pb as well. I'm definitely going to have her in this story as a central character again and maybe she'll have a little extra something to show for it... Anyway, lets go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: Time to ascend into the bowels of a warship. Tell me, can you stand the fight?_

 _Lilith: Two people now lost to time... Bauen, what were they like?_

 _Bauen: A robot of such skilled creation is a near miracle; You would do well to protect her Lilith!_

 _Lilith: Some of the stuff you have over there is pretty crazy as well!_

 _B + L: Rider once more! don't forget me!_

* * *

" _Substance takes on a variety of different attributes dependant on the stimuli presented to it… stimuli can be various items, including animals, objects both man made and natural or even vocations…" Bauen listed off as he held the bottle close to his eyes, investigating every inch he could as his other hand went to work upon the clipboard beside him. the other workers within the building had already learnt it was a fool's errand to try and interrupt him when he was in his investigation mode and considering the discovery man had made on one of his rare occasions out with the guild research teams? He would barely move away for food at times._

 _A sudden whoop of joy had Bauen giving a sigh, turning as people rushed away from the elegantly dressed man crouched down upon the ground. A quick twirl had him standing up right, a tilt of his hat in greeting as an impish grin met an exasperated sigh. The only reason why there wasn't shattered glass surrounding the pair of them was that this certainly hadn't been the first time such an attempt had been tried and after the first time where the man showed no regrets, they simply couldn't be bothered to risk it._

" _Kaito! How many times do I have to tell you, you can't enter a secured research facility by BLOODY SMASHING THROUGH THE WINDOW!? A girl cried out, Bauen turning to where a redhead burst through the proper entrance. Compared to the intruder's rather dapper choice of a top hat along with an intricately detailed red suit over a black waistcoat and bow tie, the girl was dressed up in a darker blue uniform, the universal symbol of the guild sitting upon her left breast while a stripe of red went down her side. The man merely waved off her concerns no matter how close she got, the smirk plastered upon his face showing no signs of disappearing._

" _Don't worry about the little things Ko? After all, weren't you just as excited as me to show Mr. B here our new little toy?" Kaito teased as he patted the girl's shoulder, fully aware of the veritable volcano he was messing with as Bauen let out a sigh, palm meeting his face._

" _I guess I needed to get some fresh air. Come on guys, let me get you something to eat." Bauen declared, pushing back the lock of brown that had fallen without him knowing as several rapid presses upon a keyboard had the research focus locked away as securely as possible, sinking into the ground as a door shut over it. "There, just like there was nothing! Now let me guess, Ko wanted to tell me about this odd thing of yours and you just couldn't be bothered with all of the legal crap?"_

 _The way that Kaito nodded so proudly could only bring a growl of frustration to his partner, Ko rubbing her face tiredly as a wave from Bauen had the receptionist nodding. As long as the workers showed the proper papers whenever they were asked to, it was just eventually assumed that you would continue to do so and things were sped up immensely when there wasn't a need for someone to check over everything before it could be accepted._

" _Come on, don't act like you don't hate the stuff too Mr. B!" Kaito chuckled with an elbow into the_ _ **slightly**_ _older man's stomach. It had become a personal joke that due to the two year age difference, Kaito had to refer to his 'elder with as much respect as he deserved' and the name had unfortunately stuck. "After all, how many times can you enjoy saying the phrase 'Mr. Kaito Takara and agent Ko Bana here for an unscheduled appointment with Mr. Bauen Gefahr.', right? Besides, the plans we have in store are so good, you'll probably be wracking your brain trying to guess how we designed it!"_

 _Fortunately, it wasn't too long before they found themselves within a café booth, a few moments spent trying to get Kaito away from the particularly attractive woman he had set his eyes on, claiming she would be his 'next greatest treasure' , before Bauen was intently studying the blueprints unravelled before him by Ko._

" _We understood that you were working upon your own combat systems and utilising the technology confiscated after a recent apprehension, we thought we would attempt to achieve something similar." The brunette explained, pointing to the strange vehicles shown upon the side. "Using the confiscated material containment and size alteration technology, we can shrink down our vehicles and key them to a form of armour, meaning that when the transformation system recognises our vehicles, we can equip the armour they're associated with. Then, we could use the same system in order to enlarge our vehicles to their regular size and potentially greater."_

" _Of course, there are limitations. We would need to alter our current rides in order to install the right tech and make sure they function at the different sizes while still being appropriately controllable." Kaito added around the straw of his milkshake, given free along with a certain number. "There's also a limit to the types of materials that can be stored within. We wouldn't be able to form a majorly metallic armour as you plan to do, but we have sufficient 'storage space' if you will for a helmet and maybe small armour supplements."_

" _So, you're going to combine a weapon with the transformation device as well as use it to form the dock for your transport? I will admit, that's a pretty lofty goal for you two." Bauen remarked with a chuckle, his grin only growing at the slight pout that appeared upon Ko's face at the implication. "But no matter how much you two may snap at each other, you always pull through at the end. No doubt you can get that sort of thing done!"_

" _And how far has your research got you?" Kaito prompted, the black haired man leaning forward with open eyes. "I can't believe you had to go and find whatever you've managed to get classed as an S-grade item when we weren't there to join you!"_

" _Well it's not as if I planned to find it. The mission was more of a safety determination group, make sure there wasn't any sort of traps or the like." Bauen answered, his head leaning against his palm as he reminisced. "I guess the monsters must've been deterred by whatever was coming out of it; considering what it's managed to do, I'm not surprised. Look at this."_

 _Giving a small nod to the waitress as she brought over their meals, a lovely steak placed in front of Bauen as well as the necessary cutlery, Bauen picked up the knife, looking to the sharpness of the steel before both Ko and Kaito let out a cry of alarm. When the edge that was rapidly approaching his chest suddenly didn't pierce his flesh, instead glancing off as if it was barely more than a raindrop hitting a window._

" _If I shake a bottle of an essence taken from the object which has taken on a concept, then I can channel that aspect in a diluted form." The brown haired boy explained, lifting up his left arm where a bottle of light blue was being quickly shaken, the liquid within sloshing back and forth. "This particular bottle took on the concept of diamond, meaning that shaking it gives the user exceptional defence. Of course, I did only lightly stab at my body, so if someone is going at you full force for an extended period, it isn't exactly going to cut it. Well, it would cut it, but – you see my point."_

" _And you've got other ones?" Kaito asked, his grin growing at the positive response." Then do you know how rich you can get off of this? Every single force is going to want this, even if it offers marginally greater protection; they would be able to have a greater defence without needing bulky armour. Do you have other samples of these?"_

" _Kaito, you can't just sell of stuff like this! It would have to go through various safety regulations and that's even if Bauen wants to sell anything or even has anything else to sell in the first place, right Bauen?" Ko scolded, the guild agent turning to where the messy brown haired boy was looking to the bottle in his hand._

" _Well, there are other bottles that have taken on a defined concept and some which remain impure– they're still neutral with no clear concept to the essence. If I were to sell the stuff… well, I'd want to know how much I could actually get out of the object and what different kinds I can get. I've had no repeats yet and I've managed to get things like a rose, a rabbit, a gorilla and even things like a rocket and a tank." Bauen admitted, scratching his chin as the bottle returned to his pocket, the knife now used for its proper purpose before their food went cold. "Damn… Lastation's food is almost as good as Planeptune! But yeah, I also wanted to investigate the strange link between certain bottles; for some reason, bottles that have little correlation like rabbit and tank or gorilla and diamond share similar chemical patterns whereas others have completely different bonds."_

" _Fine, I'm just saying you could probably make a pretty penny if you end up selling some of the stuff." Kaito relented, hands held up in false surrender without losing a second of his cheerful personality. "Maybe we'll make a couple extra of our stuff, get a team of our own!"_

" _Let's wait until we can actually produce our own versions of the VS changer before we start making a dream team." Ko sighed, her fork swirling the food upon her plate in a bored fashion._

" _VS changer?"_

" _Well, considering that I have a jet and I have a car, she prefers a direct method while I can actually afford to show off a bit and how I'm a freelancer while she's a guild agent, we oppose in quite a few ways." Kaito explained, trying his best not to flinch when said agent decided to punch him in the side for a certain egotistical comment. "As well as that, we both have different designs for what our armours should be like and hence, VS changer. Surely you have a cool name for the system you're working on right?"_

" _Well, I was planning on using wind generated energy in order to form my armour, but considering the bottles' capabilities, I think I'm gonna implement those into the armour system somehow." Bauen pondered, looking outside the window with a grin as several ideas flashed around his mind. "It's clear that I'm not channelling the full capabilities of the bottles, so maybe there's a way to draw a greater amount of power out of them… but if I want the power to come out, I would need to develop the system so it would cause the liquids to shake enough to unleash their powers… I could also add a recognition system for when we find a similar situation as rabbit and tank, take out some of the time needed to intensely cross-reference each bottle…"_

" _There he goes again, lost in his own world. Might as well not exist right now." Kaito quipped with a chuckle, Ko merely rolling her eyes before a smile settled upon her face. No doubt Kaito would end up doing something stupid while Bauen wasn't focused and she would have to get the scientist to actually finish his meal before her partner poisoned it with a laxative or something. Bauen could never see himself with better friends, not in a lifetime or any other as he laughed, planned and teased with the unlikely pair, sharing their joy as he mentally noted down several different suggestions and prompts._

 _It was a shame then, their fate._

* * *

 _ **GORILLA!**_

 _ **DIAMOND!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"A best match? Well then, let us see what this combination can do. Build up!"

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

 _ **KAGAYAKI NO DESTROYER! GORILLA-MOND! YEAH!**_

Where once white and black stood, the massive right hand fist of the gorilla half body sat upon the area occupied by black, while the white gave way to the brightest of shimmering blues. The chess piece that formed Build's eye was instead a diamond with a sparkle shooting upward, the jewels studded into the blue side of the chest plate and jutting out of his shoulder.

All that was needed was a hand held out to block the incoming shots, a shine taking over the shoulder mounted diamond as a growl escaped Uni. Purple Sister stepped forward to assist, only to give the man a questioning look when an arm blocked her path.

"It's not you she has an issue with. I would be a bad rider if I let innocents get hurt." Kamen Rider Build intoned, dashing off before Nepgear's hand could land upon him.

"Wait, Bauen!"

The fist shot forward and considering her long range tendencies, there was little for the CPU Candidate of Lastation to do save for dart around the attacks. Adding in the size of her weapon however, it was a much harder task that necessary, only avoiding the attacks due to the speed advantage she held over the man.

"Damn it!" but as she took to the air, Bauen was forced into defence as shots began raining down upon him, the exact opposite issue that Uni had as there was little for him to do in the form. A leap had him up to a similar height, but it simply meant he was now in the air as he was defending twisting around to prevent the shots from impacting his back while he fell flat upon the floor.

"Maybe if I…"

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

Cranking the lever with the massive fist wasn't exactly the simplest of tasks, but once he heard the music playing, the left hand was raised to the sky. Uni watched with narrowed eyes as a barrier of diamond formed above the man, a perfect circle as she stopped her shots; only to be forced to duck away when a giant storm of diamonds fired in her direction, shrapnel that would've ripped deeply into even many metals trying its hardest to imitate that scene with the CPU Candidate. Ducking and weaving around the gem hail, Uni finally began shooting once more, the constant cranking of a lever keeping the diamonds forming and smashed forward in a wild and chaotic shootout.

"Go without me! Seek out the mascot, now!" the rider called out to where IF, Compa and Nepgear were dodging the random explosions and falling diamonds, the constant movement letting neither nurse or agent properly plan a shot. "This battlefield is too dangerous for anyone not involved, get out of here immediately!"

"But-!"

"Nepgear, there's no time for buts! Let's move it while we still can!"

"But Uni!"

A few clipping strikes had the PCU Candidate fall closer to ground level, but she wasn't going to let that stop her; finger near invisible with the speed it pulled the trigger, a fountain of sparks flew off of Bauen's armour as the man was sent flying backwards, digging into the earth as he tried to keep his balance.

"You don't understand, do you?" Bauen murmured as he pulled out the brown gorilla bottle, a red one quickly taking its place. "It's natural – you're only seeing it from one side after all. Build up."

 _ **ROSE!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

Dodging the whip as it attempted to flail her, Uni gradually approached the rider, her aim clear as the gun continued to fire his way. Her expression changed little as she remained silent in her pursuit, not even caring when the whip lashed across her body as she doggedly continued on.

"Simple – you let yourself go mad with power, killed those close to you, turned a whole bunch of people into monsters and then let them rampage along with you. What isn't there to understand?" the white haired CPU Candidate answered with a sneer, launching higher in the air as the thorned tendril connected to Bauen rose higher and higher in pursuit, only to fall flat once it reached its maximum length. Bauen could only let out a growl as he realised the plan to late; far too long, his hand movements dong little to manipulate the whip now as the full brunt of Uni's gun was unleashed upon him.

Part of him didn't want to pick himself off of the ground, but if he were to remain still, there was no doubt he would be killed. After the sound of flying diamonds, firing guns and a whip lashing back and forth, the red and light blue rider could only watch in silence as Uni approached, aiming the barrel directly at him with a foul frown.

"I would tell you to say hello from me to Kaito and Ko, but somehow, I don't think you're going to the same place as them." Uni growled, the barrel beginning to glow with energy as she prepared her attack. Though she didn't know it, Bauen was looking back and forth behind his helmet, scanning the full length of the girl's body as the trigger was finally pulled and the earth beside Bauen shattered with the impact… what?

"I shall not oppose you; I do not believe I shall see Kaito Takara and Ko Bana when I move on into the next great adventure. But I ask you this, are you truly ready to send someone on that adventure?" Bauen asked, little more than a whisper as Uni looked to the hand holding the barrel, a near glowing hot barrel at that, just to the side of his body so that he was at the edge of the crater formed next to him.

"Of course I a-!"

"Then why is your finger trembling?" Indeed, though Uni didn't want to believe it as she slowly panned her eyes down, the digit resting upon the trigger shook relentlessly, the girl only now realising how deep and rapid her breathes were. "You've never had to take a human life before this. CPU Candidate, the next in line to become leader of your own nation and yet when put under pressure, your resolve starts to weaken."

"Don't say that like it's shameful. Don't act like the fact I haven't killed someone is a bad thing!" Uni spat back, her aim wavering no matter how much she tried to steady herself. "Don't act like you killing the pair of them is something you can forget, move on and live a happy life after!"

"… _Move on_? Do you think I've _moved on_?" Bauen whispered, rising from his fallen position to face Uni dead in the eyes, taking no pleasure from the way she flinched back. "I haven't _moved on_ , you never _move on_. It sits at the back of your mind, the bottom of your heart, and it _smoulders._ Burns relentlessly and when it dies down, every time you ever think of the event is a spark that sets the blaze off once more! The only _moving on_ is learning how to remember those moments and prevent the fires from burning you up; you never let it die out completely, for that is the moment your heart becomes stone, but you never let it cloud your sight for a _second._ I haven't moved on. But one thing I have done that you haven't, is that I've learned to look into the context and _control_ myself."

"You screamed at Nepgear as if she was the reason your sister is stuck within the Gamindustri Graveyard, that it was only because of one little girl rather than a mass organisation powered through the manipulation of the faith of the population. Unless you can learn to temper that heart of yours, find the balance without breaking yourself… then you have no grounds in which to judge me and your sister will remain deep outside your reach."

The girl was limp, her strength leaving her as she remained stood in place even as Bauen dusted himself off and rose to his full size. Without an acknowledgement, Kamen rider Build walked off to find his friends, leaving the CPU Candidate to look at her still trembling hand in silence, her fist smashing against the ground as the first drops of water began to fall against the earth beneath.

"Hopefully she takes the right lesson out of that… otherwise this search just got a whole lot harder for all of us…"

* * *

"Greetings and welcome to the Lastation Basilicom. My name is Kei Jinguji, the oracle of this nation." The girl stood before Compa, IF and Nepgear could easily pass for a boy, what with her sort silver hair and more neutral attire. A black tailed suit adorned with buttons, a blue tie and shorts wasn't exactly screaming the fact that she was a girl and it was only the soft voice that greeted the trio that told the truth. "I can already tell that you have questions for me, If and Compa of Planeptune?"

"Wait, how do you already know us? Have we met you before?" Compa questioned with a tilt of her head, the smallest of chuckles escaping Kei as she shook her head.

"I'm afraid not Miss Compa. Intelligence gathering s business economics 101. I've been gathering information on the pair of you since your arrival and I must say, I'm surprised by what I've found." The slight change in her tone at the remark had IF on edge, though Nepgear was still brave enough to approach, clutching her hands in front of her.

"Um, we're looking for information on your nation's mascot actually… Do you have any information on where it might be right now?" the CPU Candidate asked, the oracle before her folding her arms as a frown settled upon her visage.

"Whether I do or don't have anything to tell you is irrelevant. I'd first like to ask just how much you believe such information is worth." The silver haired girl countered, an eyebrow rising in expectation as Nepgear recoiled slightly. "Properly exchanging information through a prior agreed upon value system is key to the success of any business."

"Ehehe, but we don't have many credits…" Compa interrupted. Being a nurse in training mean that her income wasn't as high as it could be, IF was only paid per job or had a flat minimal fee per hour and being the CPU Candidate of Planeptune, Nepgear never really had need for too much money.

"Oh, that's fine. Money is not required; all that I ask is but a simple favour of you." The oracle answered, a small smile replacing her frown. "You see, Our nation is currently attempting to develop a new item, but we still lack some of the crucial materials necessary for its completion. We require a treasure gem and a fair chunk of Hematite. Perhaps you've heard of these?"

"W-what!? You do realise just how rare those things are, don't you?" IF spluttered, a bead of sweat falling down her forehead. "It's not as if any vendor sells the stuff and there's barely any information that we can work off in order to find it! Talk about one sided!"

"How unfortunate then. I suppose that means our negotiations have come to an end. There is a chance of a misappraisal when it comes to the value of my intel to you."

"Tch, slimy business weasel."

"It's okay, we'll get them for you." Nepgear spoke up, her eyes narrowing if but slightly. "when we do however, You will tell us what you know about the mascot, right?"

"Well, I'd also like to have some information of my own. Namely about an event that occurred three years ago and a rescue attempt… as well as something that happened much prior." Kei added, Compa letting out a short gasp of air.

"Wait, you know about our rescue attempt at the Gamindustri Graveyard!?" the pink haired girl exclaimed, Kei indulging herself in a smug smile as IF's fists visually tightened.

"Circumstantial evidence; call it a hunch I had. Besides, how could I be wrong with Nepgear here right next to me?" the silver haired oracle explained before her tone suddenly shifted into something far more grave. "Did I not already explain to you that I was gathering intelligence upon your group as soon as you passed Lastation's borders? I know exactly who your group has been travelling with and if I don't start receiving answers…"

"Don't say a thing Nepgear." IF declared, Nepgear doing nothing to remove that hand that suddenly clamped down upon her face. "After all, information needs to be given in an equivalent exchange, isn't that right? We wouldn't you to end up looking the hypocrite because you weren't willing to follow the exact same 'rules' as you imposed upon the people you worked with."

"…That is correct, it would be rather rude of me to demand information of you for no price. Fair enough." Kei eventually submitted after an intense half minute long stare down. "Very well, I ask that you find the materials asked of you first and then we may both freely exchange information. Surely you can see how much of a bargain that is?"

"Understood! We'll be going then!" watching as Nepgear quickly dragged away IF before the brunette could make the situation worse with Compa quick to follow, Kei let her confident persona give way just the slightest bit, aa tinge of worry entering her eyes as she watched the group.

"To think, they hold both information upon the infamous Bauen Gefahr and the state of Noire and I let my emotions dictate the business negotiations…" she sighed, rubbing her face as she turned away. "How amateurish of me to do. Please be safe Noire…"

Making their way out of the door, the trio immediately rushed over to where Bauen was awaiting them, tenderly dealing with the wounds he had sustained even with the power of his armour protecting him.

"Now now Compa, I'm perfectly fine. Tell me, have you managed to find any information on the mascot?" Bauen prompted, the nurse backing away with a pout as a growl escaped IF.

"The damn oracle will only tell us anything about it if we find her a treasure gem and some hematite. Things are so rare the only info we can work off of is that some monsters end up collecting rare gems." IF spat out, Bauen giving a weary nod. It made sense that not all of the different oracles would be so willing to tell of where their mascots were; while she was most likely more willing than others, even Histoire might be loath to tell a non-Planeptune resident just where the mascot resided.

"Well in that case, I suppose there is little else for us to do. Shall we be off then?" The older man declared, turning away just as Nepgear's hesitant voice rose up.

"Um, Bauen, did you…?" there was silence as the man turned back, the dead look within his eyes causing the girl to raise her hands to her mouth. Fortunately, his next words had her more relaxed, even if she could never forget the imagined image of Bauen standing triumphantly above a defeated beyond defeated Uni conjured by his claim.

"She still lives, though perhaps not as the same girl she was before. Should she choose to do the same thing as she has this time though and place your innocent lives in needless danger… then I shall not hesitate to put her down like a rabid dog."

* * *

"It makes sense that we have yet to find the items we need. Had it been that easy, there is no doubt the oracle would've found it already." Bauen reasoned as yet another defeated creature within the endless zone proved useless beyond basic items that could be found from the majority of monsters within the area.

"I guess running around the entire place with no directions will get us nowhere." Nepgear admitted, the girl looking around the darker expanse. The area was completely flat, a brilliant view of all the area around if the entire area actually had anything worth viewing beyond basic structures needed to keep the floor beneath their feet.

"Why the glum faces people?" a voice called out, the group turning to the short cut redhead pulling her sword out of the quickly pixelating corpse of a monster with a smile. With a white tank top beneath a blue and white jacket, skirt and boots of similar colours and black fingerless gloves and stockings, the swords-woman was definitely a traveller; no normal person would risk going around with so little armour if it wasn't for ease of travel. "Whoops! Where're my manners? I'm Falcom – your average everyday adventurer as you can see. I also seem to have a nasty habit of meddling in the affairs of troubled people like you.

"Wow, an adventurer! Iffy, do you think she knows something? It couldn't hurt to ask, right?" Compa asked as she grabbed a hold of IF's shoulders, the agent letting herself e shaken for a moment before she threw the hands off.

"It couldn't hurt to ask, especially considering we're fresh out of alternatives."

"So, we're looking for these two different gems – one called Hematite and a treasure gem. Do you have any idea where they could be?" Nepgear asked, the girl mulling it over in her head for a moment.

"Well, I don't know anything about this Hematite stuff, but I swear there was something about a treasure gem… you won't find it here at least." The redheaded girl recalled, placing her sword upon her shoulder. "If my memory serves me right, there were talks of a gen hoarding monster over in Planeptune, around the Virtua forest area. I would take you there myself if I could, but I can't just skip out halfway through my errands. Sorry about that."

"No matter Falcom, your information is more than enough right now." Bauen dismissed, the drill crushed stabbed into the ground as he lifted himself up from his crouched position, the remains proving useless once more. "I take it you must be off then?"

"Yep! Now that your eyes are full of life once more, my work here is done. Perhaps we'll meet again in the future: good luck!"

With a bottle within Bauen's phone and another usage of the gashat gifted to IF, they were on the roads once more and zooming around Virtua Forest in no time. Delving deeper into the wooded area than they wished to last time, it gradually became harder and harder for the vehicles to remain stable, the roots tangled upon the floor more than likely to send them head first over the handlebars as they were forced to continue on foot.

"What about Mister Scary dragon Monster over there?" Compa pointed out, IF looking to the beast in question with a grimace, pulling out her quatars.

"Yep, that looks like our target. Time to pull out all the stops I suppose." The agent grumbled. Before them, a bipedal reptilian dragon rose to its terrifying full height, a crocodile like maw opening to unleash a great roar that near shook the earth with its strength, wings flaring ad talons poised to tear a man in half.

"Looks like this can only end well. Nepgear, would you be so kind as to become your HDD self?" Bauen prompted as two bottles were being shaken in the hand, said CPU Candidate giving a nod before the light enveloped her and left only Purple Sister with her weapon primed, soaring into the sky to start slashing away.

 _ **GORILLA!**_

 _ **GAME!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

Brown and pink fluid formed the two half bodies within their frames, smashing them onto Bauen's body to the sound of funky music. The gorilla half was matched to a pink counterpart, a rectangular game controller like those of old making up the eye while the left arm was made out as if it was formed of pixels, an arm guard holding buttons like another controller.

Leaping upward, the same arm pointing downward had a platform of pink forming beneath him, just the right level for the piston powered fist of the gorilla half to crash into the beast's maw. All that was needed to shatter the platform was a single strike from the monster, sending Bauen tumbling to the ground with a heavy thud, but with Compa providing supporting fire, there was little chance for it to advance save it get splashed with what appeared to be an acid of sorts; Kamen Rider Build couldn't help but believe that the girl was swapping the mystery fluid every battle.

With Nepgear dancing her mirage dance around the draconic creature's body, much of its attention was diverted to that source of paining, meaning that IF clawing at its feet was near ignored save for the few stomps that threatened to crush her to a pulp. What they did succeed in doing however was dislodging the ground below, the agent tripping upon the moving rocks and falling flat upon the ground. With the foot rapidly approaching her body, IF was left to raise her weapons above her face, waiting for the coming impact before finally letting them move away after a couple moments left painless.

"Come on IF, have a little more faith in yourself." Bauen chuckled, the raised fist completely preventing the dragon from moving before a small shove upwards had its footing shaken, Compa giving the cutest war cry ever as she charged over to directly stab the creature in the exposed flesh. Nepgear landed upon the newly formed platform Bauen created for him to work off of, a block forming out of pink pixels before him that was immediately struck forward, crashing into the dragon as it fell to the pixels that made it.

"Now then, let's end this quickly!" Nepgear called out, priming her stance as the ginormous fist upon Bauen's right arm spun the lever at the side, his smirk behind the helmet growing as he mentally simulated the attack, the beast scrambling to its feet with a fierce roar.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX ATTACK! YEAH!**_

"It's on like trademarked character!" Bauen roared in reply, his hands held high as pixels began to gather together, twisting and turning around each other before a massive pixelated barrel was hovering above him, a girder like construct aiming directly towards the monster as a grand chuck had the barrel… barrelling forward, the pixelated red girder doing its job of guiding the giant object directly towards the monster as energy wrapped around it to further speed up its movements. There was little else for the dragon to do but hold its arms out forward, a futile attempt to stop it for seventy five meters was more than enough for it to reach terminal speeds.

Smashing against the dragon's body, there was little for it to do to stop a massive barrel rocketing forward at great speeds, the monster obliterated with a grand explosion as the various digital props disappeared, Bauen snatching the gem that flew out of the dragon's body with a satisfied sigh.

"And that's our Treasure gem sorted. 'Item get!' as they say!" The kamen Rider declared, tucking the glowing blue gem away for safe keeping. "All that we need to accomplish now is the acquisition of the Hematite and we shall find the Lastation mascot."

"Not so fast you lot!" but a sudden call had them pausing in their victory, the familiar pale sight of the underling entering the battlefield with a triumphant grin on her face. "Don't think you can escape this time!"

"I'm afraid we don't have enough time; the word count means we're done."

"Wait, you can't just cut me off like tha-!"

Bauen was correct.

* * *

 **And we stop right there. Yes, you're going to have to wait for the next chapter to see her get beaten up again! Ah, nothing says Neptunia like fourth wall breaking. I got the idea for the Gorilla-Game combination when I was randomly thinking of combinations; you want to both get functional forms as well as something that'll entertain. when I just imagine Build somehow recreating Donkey Kong in the middle of a battle, it had to be included in there somewhere.**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	5. 5 - the Hematite hunt

**Right then, we're back in action! I wasn't able to upload last time due to personal family reasons, but now we're back and with more flashback and forms! It's honestly a little bit weird knowing that there's so many forms to choose from to use in this story, I'm kind of having a hard time planning how to fit it all in, but trust me; there's going to be some special stuff soon. Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: The craziest of humans prove to be the most vulnerable at times. proceed with caution Issei!_

 _Issei: Linda's back to battle! But wait, you don't call her Linda, do you?_

 _Bauen: Issei, stop being polite to your enemies. We can't help it if she's an underling._

 _Issei: ... Okay then. time to fight!_

 _B + I: Rider once more! Phone up the future!_

* * *

"I feel sorry for you, having to come to us and get beaten so many times Miss Underling."

Though Compa's words were meant entirely innocently, it did little to draw from the fact that it caused the anger levels within the underling to rise dramatically, the pale girl trembling as her fist balled up. Still, a target that was fighting with anger clouding their eyes was one that was more likely to ignore risks and their own safety; perhaps Bauen could play along a bit too.

"No matter where you go, underlings are always given the bulk of the grunt work. Almost makes you feel somewhat sorry for them." The elderly man chuckled, a vein suddenly appearing upon the underling's forehead. Success.

"Ugh, shut the hell up! I'm _so sorry_ for being who I am!" the green haired underling screamed out, weapon falling from her shoulder into her grip. Hmph, not like it matters at all anyway. After this, you won't be flapping those gums anymore! Time to face our secret weapon!"

"Oh? So you realised that underlings like you need to come at us in droves to stand a chance?" IF taunted with a smirk, hands on her hips even as an array of monsters began to gather around them. "Hey Gear, why don't you go HDD and knock them down?"

"Don't worry Iffy! I'll get this done in one fell swoop!" Nepgear answered, a hand held to her heart as energy gathered within her. It was not to last however, for the underling gave a small chuckle, a single click of her fingers being all that was needed in order to get the monster gathered to give a tremendous metallic roar, a near visible wave passing over the group. Looking around, IF, Compa and Bauen proved to be unharmed, but when Nepgear fell to the ground coughing and spluttering with deep breaths, it was clear that there was an issue. "Wha-!? H-how? I can't access my HDD!"

"You idiots! Do you think I wouldn't be prepared for this after the last time we fought?" The underling laughed out, sitting pretty behind one of the summoned machines. "This little beauty seals your ability to transform! Let's see how you fight against me now!"

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **TANK!**_

Bauen had his hand ready upon the handle of his driver, but when no noise came out other than that alone, his scowl grew far larger than it had before.

"So, it doesn't just affect the natural capabilities of a CPU, but any sort of system that could be used for transformation…" the man muttered as he cracked his knuckles, fists raised for battle. They lowered when he didn't notice Nepgear standing up again, still coughing as he lowered himself down, about to place his hand upon her chest when he noticed an odd wetness on his hand. "Blood? ...She was gathering energy for the transformation when it was suddenly forced to disperse…. It probably was forced to disperse through the body and put strain upon her organs meaning we need to act quickly!"

"Hold it right there!"

"Eh? Who the hell are you!?"

"How dare you treat such cute girls in this way?"

The girl who appeared was definitely an interesting one as she ran out before the group. A redhead clad in a flower patterned dress of red, black and gold, sleeves detached with the centrepiece of a golden dragon reaching for the blue jewel upon her collar stood proudly in defence of Iffy and Compa, who had started their care for Nepgear as rapidly as humanely possible.

"I've been eyeing these three girls as potential wifeys, so any funny moves and you'll have to answer to Red!" the girl declared proudly, whipping back a bang of red streaked with white from her face with a triumphant grin. There were simply no words to be had, especially at such a bizarre exclamation; it took all Bauen had to prevent himself from letting his palms meet his face.

"What in the most unholy hell is this mad chick trying to say!? Is she missing some screws or something!?" the underling roared out, though it did little to effect the determination of Red as the dragon wound around her gave a sharp little cry.

"For my goddess, my CPU, my wifey! I am coming to save you!" Red proudly declared, placing a finger upon Nepgear's mouth when she so much as made a move to say a letter. "No, save any questions for the honeymoon later my lovely. We can go over everything later once we've dealt with this distraction!

"…For goodness sakes, let's just get this over and done with!" Bauen declared as he held his hand out, the driver twisting pipes around each other before the drillcrusher was in his hands, the elderly man charging straight towards the M-3 Customs. Blades of energy were formed by them as the man leapt into the fray, the sound of a drill spinning at max speed mixing with the sound metal trying its best to hold up against the assault. "Allow me to propose this hypothesis; do you believe they would stop the power of bottles from enhancing my body rather than allowing me to transform?"

Red was perfectly happy to punch away at any of the monsters that threatened to move even remotely close to her vulnerable 'wifeys', a fierce energy gathering at her fists with every strike, just like the martial arts masters that were shown on TV. It truly was the fury of a woman scorned, for when one managed to fire a laser that splashed against the ground beside IF, the robot was very quick to find itself without a gun to shoot again with, the useless metal being crushed within the mouth of a dragon as Red proceeded to beat it to scrap.

"Jungle no ouja! Build-Gorilla!" Gorilla bottle in hand, Bauen decided to join the physical fiasco, his strikes quite literally driving one of the M-3 customs into the ground as his joined fists pounded the top of the monster through earth and metal. Another found itself with a gaping hole straight through it, the remains tossed in the direction of its allies as a primal sound escaped the madly grinning elderly man while he beat his fists against his chest. "Shall we try ano- wait…?"

A sudden warmth within his pocket had the elderly man pause to root for the source, one of the bloated bottles holding the impure essence within it starting to morph as the very bottle itself began to change forms. Where white once was, pink reigned, the image of a UFO now shown upon the front as the bottle cap showed the letters T and U in yellow and pink respectively.

A yo-yo suddenly smashed against a robot to bring forth a black wave, Nepgear letting out another gasp as the pain within her chest lightened slightly. Watching the toy return to its owner's hand, the underling couldn't help but growl; Red had managed to destroy the robot emitting the transformation prevention wave!

"Now you can't stop people transforming, and you can't hurt my goddess anymore! The redhead declared proudly, Bauen quick to catch the hint and start fumbling through his pockets before a sudden hit of inspiration came to him,

"Ah I see… so considering the T upon your top, you must work with…" he pulled out the yellow bottle he had so far reserved for use within the Machine Builder; so far, it had served to greatly enhance the speed of his vehicle, so maybe it could do the same to his transformation as both bottles were shaken. "Now, shall we begin the experiment?"

 _ **TORA!**_

 _ **UFO!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **MIKAKUNIN JUNGLE HUNTER! TORA-UFO! YEAH!**_

Yellow took over the left side of the head and legs as well as the right arm, while pink took over the remaining sections. Two eyes were formed of a tiger's face in yellow and a UFO in pink, another UFO taking place upon his left shoulder. Just the same, another head of a tiger took the place of Bauen's right shoulder, a striped black and yellow chest plate meeting the more mechanical pink side.

Without a moment's hesitation, the man rose up into the air, energy moulding itself beneath him to form a UFO platform that sucked any robot that came remotely close to the tractor beam. The vicious sound of grinding metal came from within the construct before the machines were spat out, met by the fierce claw of a tiger.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YAY!**_

The claw grew to an enormous size and in time at all, the only thing left from Red and Bauen's rampage was scrap metal, the underling stumbling backwards as Nepgear's blood ridden cough began to lessen.

"Gah! Taken down by a damn cliché kid with no brains and an old man! Damn it, you'll all rue the day you ruined my plan!" the pale skin girl cried out, running away as Bauen pulled the bottles from within his driver, the two halves falling away to expose the grizzly man beneath.

"You can't help but praise that girl… I mean, she fights terribly, but her ability to escape every time at light speed's nothing to scoff at." If commented with folded hands, watching the last remains of the underling's dust cloud fade away as Nepgear, now slightly less stable upon her feet, walked over to Red with a bright smile on her face.

"Um, thank you very much for your help. You came at just the right time…" With such words of praise from a beautiful young girl, Bauen didn't stand a chance as he was shoved away ungraciously by Red, stars in her eyes as she approached her CPU far closer than needs be.

"Hehe, it's only natural for a girl to come to her future wifey's aid!" the dragon wearing girl proudly proclaimed, a grin upon her lips. "After all, I've been travelling around Gamindustri in order to find the perfect wifey!"

"Wait, there was rumours I heard around the place… some strange girl who was dedicated to finding her soulmate or something like that!" IF recalled, the brunette doing her best to supress a chuckle – there was far more said about her, but it was polite not to mention those sorts of things in public.

"Ah, that's amazing! People are already spreading rumours about me!? That's super-de-duper!" the redhead cheered, jumping up and down in sheer joy.

"Would you care to explain what you're doing all the way out here then? Naturally, we're incredibly grateful for your assistance, but this isn't exactly the easiest of places to come to." Bauen interrupted, a slight frown appearing on his lips. You just didn't find many people in monster invested areas unless they were associated with the guild r had a lot of courage; something told the man it was more the latter.

"Y'see, I've always wanted to have a CPU wifey, so when I caught news of you four leaving Planeptune, I knew this was my big chance!" Red exclaimed, not at all guilty about the fact she had quite easily admitted to the fact that she was watching the CPU Candidate's movements. "Sure enough, I managed to find you, especially my goddess, in such a dime romance novel situation – in danger! Can't you hear the bells of marital destiny ringing for us!? This meeting is the start of our life together!"

"Um…Uh…Goodness… I don't really see where this conversation is going…" Nepgear admitted, the purple haired CPU candidate slowly backing away before she was hurriedly grabbed by a star struck Red.

"Okay, so basically, take me with you! There's no way I'd let my wifey out of my sight when trouble is afoot!" Red begged. "I do hereby solemnly swear to protect my wifey with my lifey!"

"Uh huh… Um, wh-what am I supposed in this kind of situation…?" Bauen couldn't help the belly chuckle that escaped him, eyes drawn to him as he could only let out a sigh tinged with sadness even though his laughter.

"I feel like I've seen this scene before… just switch…"

* * *

" _Y-you can't come with me! This is technically confidential business!" Bauen coughed out, looking around at all the faces that immediately turned to face them. Ko was doing her best to futilely pull her partner away from the brunette's waist, for Kaito was absolutely determined to receive no answer save for yes. "Wh-what am I supposed to do in this sort of situation? You're turning a secret operation into a public spectacle…!"_

" _But Bauen! You said we could see you test t-!" a hand suddenly slapped across the top hat wearing teen's face as Ko looked around, a sharp glare having many turning a blind eye upon them; she had become somewhat famous for her untold retributions and should she ever be forced to go through with one… Stein had never been the same again…_

" _F-fine! Just stop clinging on like that and let's move!" Bauen hastily answered, the group rushing off as fast as possible before they found themselves situated outside of Lastation's main city, Bauen shaking his bottles with a sigh as Ko had to near manhandle her partner in order to keep him calm. The scientist himself couldn't exactly say he wasn't intrigued as well, for the pair now held a pair of white guns highlighted with red and orange, the oddest of handles where the stock of a typical rifle would be._

" _We don't hold back on our work; we said we were going to work on our armour system and we made it fully functional!" Kaito proudly declared, holding up the small jet fighter within his gloved hands. Taking it carefully within his own, Bauen was quick to pick up upon the very odd alteration that was made to its original design, his eyes narrowing as he turned to the flamboyant man._

" _Oi, Kaito… why the hell did you put a giant dial on your vehicle?" indeed, while the majority of the red body remained untainted, the odd black dial stuck up like some strange beacon from the roof of the jet, Kaito's smirk merely growing as he clapped his hands together._

" _Well I figured I might as well add some safety features to ensure that nobody else that isn't approved can just grab the gun out of my hand utilise the system, so every vehicle I utilise has a special code that must be inputted before they can actually be utilised." The suited man explained, an elbow finding its way into Bauen's stomach. "Not everyone can be as lucky as you, our work has to be a publicly known development in technology with the potential to be mass produced."_

" _That's why unlike the dial fighter system, I ended up having to produce a system that would be faster to use." Ko interrupted, the policewoman holding up her own vehicle that had Bauen blinking twice. "Yep. Trigger machines, skipping the code based system in order to produce a more official seeming transformation; according to the higher ups, it doesn't seem right if their operatives appear to be breaking into their own weapons. Watch this."_

 _Sliding on the jet fighter and the trigger machine, a white and black accented vehicle of red, to the left side of the gun, both Kaito and Ko looked at each other before they went about their separate transformations, Bauen eagerly watching on._

 _ **RED!**_

 _With the barrel of the gun pointing forward and downwards, Kaito gripped the dial upon the top of the jet, practiced fingers easily twisting the dark dial with a smile._

 _ **0-1-0!**_

 _ **MASQUERADE!**_

 _ **KAITO CHANGE!**_

 _Twisting the barrel of the gun to the right as he held the red button on the back grip, Kaito pointed the gun forward with a pull of the trigger. With a card shooting out of the front, a suit of black highlighted by a red cape and a design upon the suit that replicated a jacket and a bow tie. An ethereal top hat of crimson appeared before Kaito's face before it suddenly materialised into a proper helmet, the hat forming a visor upon a helmet of black._

 _ **LUPINRANGER!**_

 _ **ICHIGO!**_

 _Unlike Kaito though, Ko held the gun straight upward, her trigger machine being slotted on the front before the girl twisted the grip in her left hand so the vehicle was on the bottom of the weapon._

 _ **PATRISE!**_

 _ **KEISATSU CHANGE!**_

 _The red trigger on the back of the vehicle took the place of the gun's usual trigger, though it did little to stop the girl from firing the changer. What came out was similar to a police license, though it quickly unfolded to reveal a badge as it fell down spinning onto Ko's body. The redhead soon found herself wearing a suit of mostly white with red boots and metal shoulder pads, the design done upon the torso replicating a suit with a tie. The helmet was done fully in red as well, though the visor was formed from a police badge shaped section of black._

 _ **PATRANGER!**_

" _Lupin-Red!"_

" _Patren-Ichigo!"_

" _VS sentai Pat-Lupin!" Bauen was silent as the two stood before him, Kaito posing with his hand straight up while Ko brandished her gun, or at least he was silent before he burst down into laughter._

" _You couldn't even agree on a look then?" the brunette chuckled as he pulled out his own belt, both taking a moment to admire the invention before it was wound around Bauen's waist. Two bottles found themselves being shaken before the inventor slotted them into the appropriate area. "Let me show you how a scientist becomes a fighter!"_

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **TANK!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

" _Henshin!"_

 _ **RABBIT-TANK!**_

Bauen shook his head. That was all in the past.

* * *

"So we ended up in a deal with another person in order to find some hematite eh? Nepgear, you most certainly like to get yourself tangled up." Bauen remarked as they made their way to Rebeat Resort to deal with a monster that was apparently far too unruly for the gathered guards to deal with. Fortunately, the particular dungeon was rather bright and scenic compared to other locations near to Lastation's, so they were at least able to take in a few rays. "So, we're looking for a sea hunter... that strange creature seems appropriate.

The crimson character was an incredibly odd amalgamation between what appeared to be a dolphin and a dragon, bright wings if white lifting it above the gathered group. Sure, it might've posed some sort of threat to a group of normal soldiers, but to a group like theirs, it couldn't exactly be much of a challenge when faced with the powers of HD and a kamen rider. As soon as a burst of light replaced Nepgear with the strength of Purple Sister, Bauen didn't even need to transform as he charged forward with the drillcrusher. With the rapidly rotating drill and a flash of whatever light formed Purple Sister's blade, the beast was soon dissolved into the original pixels from which it came.

"Goodness, that didn't take much time at all." Nepgear commented as she allowed the power of Purple Sister to fade away with a smile. "You don't think I was a little too hard on the monster, right?"

"Never hold questions of if you're too hard on a monster." Bauen answered with a hand upon the purple haired girl's shoulders, only for him to turn to where Compa was suspiciously investigating the ground before them. "What on earth are you doing?"

"I found something weird… come take a look!" the pink haired nurse in training explained, the group gathering around one of the oddest monsters they had met. It wasn't exactly a sea hunter; that was for sure for the chubby mouse like body wasn't suited for combat at all. White whiskers sat upon dark grey skin, arms and legs of black with a heart of pink and yellow halves upon his chest and one entirely of black upon his tail and both broken by a line through the centre.

"How are you feeling Mr mouse?" when Warechu let his eyes flutter open, he wasn't sure what to expect. If there was anything he could have guessed however, it most certainly would not have been through absolute angel that was hovering over him, hearts immediately filling his sight. "What's wrong Mr mouse?"

"Chu! E-er, can I... can I get your name? Please?" Warechu struggled to speak, his heart beating far too fast for the dark mouse to handle, but when you were faced with such outstanding beauty, what else could you do? Of course, the nurse was absolutely oblivious to the effect she was having upon Warechu, the nurse in training happily giving her name. "Compa huh?... Compa... Mmmm, chu!"

"Wait! Where are you going Mr Mouse!?" but the strange creature proved to fast to be caught and before the group knew it, there was no sign of it left, Nepgear shaking her head slightly.

"So that mouse... it was actually talking, right? I wasn't just hallucinating all of that, right?" the CPU Candidate of Planeptune questioned, Bauen merely resting a hand upon her shoulder silently.

"Well, not like it matters. Extra monster or not, we still managed to take out what we needed, so let's go get that info!" IF cheered, starting to move as the brunette casually looked over her shoulder to the silent Compa. "Hey Compa, are you not going to come with us? We're pretty much done here."

"Aw, Mr Mouse..." they didn't notice where Warechu had sequestered himself in the background, the dark mouse breathing heavily as he kept a desperate search out for the group and a soon as the last person disappeared, he let out the greatest of sighs. With hands to burning cheeks, a squeal found itself escaping Warechu as he slid down against the wall.

"My...my angel! Oh Compa, you're just so adorable! My adorable little angel!"

* * *

 _ **BAKUSOU BIKE!**_

 _ **GASHAT!**_

 _ **BUILD CHANGE!**_

"There! The cat monster we need!" IF called out, Compa clinging on as tightly as she could while still aiming her needle, the size certainly not helping the stability of the rapid bike of yellow. Beside them, Bauen let out a cheer just as Nepgear let out a cry of alarm; the older man had let the purple haired girl handle his own drillcrusher in the gun form, meaning she was only able to cling on with one arm as the man gave chase. "All we have to do is get the hematite from it, if we can even shoot it out of its grasp, we're good to go!"

Bauen was the only one able to see through the shots that were flying about to see the slightest glimpse of black at the side, a crimson eye looking into a barrel that if it fired at the right moment...! A twist of the Machine Builder's handles had the red bike drifting, leaning so far down that Bauen was almost skimming of the left side of his jacket and Nepgear was screaming. It did mean however that they dodged underneath the overcharged bullet that fired over them, striking the side of the monster as the elderly rider corrected their positioning with a screech.

"Got it! Hmm...? ACK, NEPGEAR!?" the black haired gunner hurriedly dropped her weapon, the rifle disintegrating into pixels as it returned to her inventory while she dashed over to the group. "I was so focused on trying to get the target, I completely didn't notice you!"

"…Tell me, are we going to ignore the fact that we were on particularly loud motorcycles?"

"Don't worry about it Uni! You were looking for the Hematite too then?" Nepgear eagerly responded, Bauen barely given a second thought as the CPU Candidate of Planeptune dashed over from the bicycle towards Uni. All the man could do was give a sigh, a push of the button on the Machine Builder's screen having it fold and unfold until it was back to its original phone shape, the removal of the Bakusou Bike gashat from the side slot having IF and Compa's bike packed away as well.

"W-well yeah, I was, but what do you think you're doing here anyway!?" the black haired girl spluttered out, a small growl escaping her as she banged a palm against her forehead. "Erm, uh, I mea- what I meant was… I'm sor- no, wait… Argh, I'm not mentally prepared for this!"

"I'm so happy that you're doing well Uni… I mean, we did leave on a sour note and all." Nepgear recalled, the girl turning to the side for a brief moment before her prior pluckiness returned full force. "Did Miss Kei ask you for help too? If you want, we can collect the stuff together; that monster wasn't holding enough for us to work with."

"D-don't get ahead of yourself! I-I have something to say to you, okay?" Uni interrupted, crimson eyes briefly moving to Bauen to see the small nod he gave in her direction before she gave a small cough. "S-so, like, you listening? I'm only going to say this once in your lifetime, so pay attention!"

"Yippee! I'm so happy you're here! Now I know we'll all get the hematite we need no problem!"

"Hey! For goodness sake, I thought I told you not to get ahead of yourself! Grr… Ugh, screw it! You'll never get your precious hematite and live to tell the tale!"

Bauen's eyes narrowed from where he, IF and Compa were watching from the side-lines. The rider had thought he had been pretty successful with his little talk, but if the girl was unwilling to change her ways, then there was little they could do to help such a lost cause.

"Huh? Why are you being a bully? Are you… still mad at me?" Nepgear asked, cowering back from the furious CPU candidate of Lastation. When the lilac haired girl reached a hand out in attempt to calm Uni down however, she was to be met with the barrel of a gun, the trembling finger upon the trigger mere moments away from pulling just a little too far.

"Shut up, you dolt! I said you won't get it, so you'll never get it! ever!"

"Y-you're being so mean today… fine! You can't have it either!"

"Wait, what!? You're mad at me now!? Then let's just find out who can get to it first then, shall we?"

 _ **DOCTOR!**_

 _ **GAME!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"Come on now girls, retract the claws. Can't you see we have a little issue to deal with here?" IF prompted, the group that had gathered to avenge their fallen feline friend having substantially grown during the little spat and yet the only ones prepared were IF, Compa and Bauen.

"I'm so sorry about them Mister Scary Monster Horde. Can you wait just a little bit longer?"

"I will admit, this sort of music isn't exactly fit for a dramatic cat fight." Bauen sighed, looking to the belt as it flashed white and pink. "There's no real reason not to fight the monsters; by the time we're done, the two will probably still be arguing, but we're still missing our powerhouse. You two, can we hurry it up!?"

"Sorry about all this Mister Monsters. I brought a thermos of tea, so let me pour you all a cup…"

But a sudden roar of the monsters collectively had the nurse in training drop her mentioned thermos, the liquid spilling everywhere as the horde worked itself up into a frenzy. A kick from Bauen had them directed away from Uni and Nepgear, but a quick turn had his fists smashing down on the top of their heads, both girls giving out a cry.

"Now then, I want you two to look each other in the eye long and good, okay?" the man began, yet to take his fist off the girls' heads as he sternly looked down upon them. "Good, now then… STOP FIGHTING AND DO WHAT WE'RE HERE TO DO!"

"Y-YES SIR!" watching the backs of two girls as they momentarily forgot their argument in the face of a much more terrifying face, Bauen let a chuckle come from his lips; there was nothing more satisfying than solving a little dispute the old fashioned way – making the two fighters utterly wet themselves at what would happen if they continued (as used by wives and mothers around the world!) Cranking the lever on the side of his belt, Bauen was expecting the customary pipes to form the pink and white armour around him and yet, no matter how long he did the motion, there was no sign of the liquid at all, merely an odd digital circle of pink, white and green around him.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Um… henshin?"

 _ **EX-AID!**_

 _ **MIGHTY JUMP! MIGHTY KICK! MIGHTY-MIGHTY ACTION! X!**_

"What?" Several portraits of strange faces appeared upon the odd digital wheel that was orbiting Bauen and almost not of his own volition, the man held out his hand to strike the pink haired chibi to force the others away. Though his driver had no way normally to produce it, an odd hologram showing a silhouette of pink shot out forward before falling back upon him along with the portrait to reveal a rider well known to many within Gamindustri. IF was the first to see the new form the elderly rider had and had it not been for the danger surrounding them, she would've dropped her weapons in shock.

"That's… that's the original form of Game Heart!" The new armour was much more form fitting than the previous, replacing the usual suit of twin colours with a similar purple to the hair shown on the portrait. Said hair was slicked off to the left hand side in three major spikes, an odd moulding for a helmet while within a silver lined goggle like visor, bright near luminescent eyes stared with determination. The chest piece was reminiscent of a fighting game HUD, complete with a life bar and on the back was a similar face to that of the helmet's sans the eyes more This was completed by shoes lined with the as the collar of the chest piece, making for a far brighter looking fighter than Bauen was used to.

"The power of Lord Game Heart?" Bauen parroted, the now pink coloured rider looking to his new equipment with an unseen grin. "I see. Certainly lacking in armour, but if it's good enough for a CPU, then it most certainly is good enough for me. Now, it's time to clear this experiment with no continues! The laws of this game have been decided!"

 _ **GASHACON BREAKER!**_

 _ **GAME START!**_

A white hammer found itself in Bauen's hand, the edge done in green with a pink line running down the centre while two buttons were engraved with A and on the side. The Tae Kwon Cats didn't even know what was coming for them as the rider smashed down upon them, a great laughter escaping Bauen as he saw the signs proclaiming 'hit!' upon every monster that he struck.

"The power of my fellow rider… it's incredible!" he cried out as the gamer rider pressed the A button, the pink line running down the centre of the hammer suddenly unfolding until a sword blade with a trail of energy flowing behind it stood to full attention.

 _ **JAKIIIN!**_

A few smacks of the green B button had each of his strikes to the feline monsters twice as effective, or three times, or even five depending on how much time there was for him between each attack on Bauen's person. It was crazy, barely even a threat to hi- Game Heart's powers. All too soon, they were down to what appeared to be the leader of the group, said Tae Kwon Cat shuffling backwards anxiously as it looked to the fighters before it.

"IF, do you mind if I borrow the Bakusou Bike gashat? If I recall correctly, then it should be able to help end this." The brunette agent was hesitant, but still passed over the yellow game cartridge that soon found itself inserted into the slot of black upon the right hand side of his weapon, purple energy gathering around the blade as he tossed it over to his left hand so he could crank the Build driver's lever.

 _ **GASHAT!**_

 _ **KIMEOUJA!**_

 _ **BAKUSOU CRITICAL FINISH!**_

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

The energy soon grew to cover his legs too as the man leapt into the air, every girl gathered backing away to leave the cat to its fate. A flurry of slashes was barely visible to the human eye thanks to the incredible speed the man seemed to move at, the hit signs almost too slow to appear at the right time before Bauen had changed things up to kicking. What started as ten hits soon grew into twenty, into forty, eighty, one hundred and sixty, three hundred and twenty before the final strike with his sword and foot together brought the total to a grand nine hundred and ninety nine combo – utterly unnecessary but incredibly satisfying as the monster dissolved into pixels.

 _ **KAISHIN NO IPPATSU!**_

"I guess some sad fodder mobs aren't enough. Oh well, I guess I'll just go easy on them for now… wasn't expecting them to have the power of Game heart though." The underling muttered from her hiding place, biting at her thumb. She wasn't expecting miracles from them sure, but as soon as the old man pulled out the power of freaking Game Heart, there was no chance for the monsters. "Still, ASIC managed to beat game Heart before, and that was when he was the real deal. A copy will be no sweat when in a proper fight."

"Looks like using that best match needs a lot more energy than maintaining other combinations." Pulling the bottles from his driver, Bauen was left panting as he turned around to the rest of the group, a tired hand passing back the bike game gashat to IF. "Still, should it be called for, that power will definitely come in useful… I wonder if there are any other combinations which can form entirely new armour. Based off the CPUs perhaps?"

"Most importantly, have you two finished with your little lovers spat yet?" If asked as she looked to the two cowed CPU Candidates, both girls bowing their heads to the others.

"Yes… I'm sorry for kicking us so much of a fuss." Nepgear said as she bowed down even further, though a quick glimpse to the side showed that Uni had yet to answer. Instead, her face was covered in a constant grimace, a quick turn having her march to the other side of the small field they found themselves on. "Uni? What are you doing?"

But a bright light blinded them all before Black sister was hovering before them, the large cannon she was wielding soon having its barrel pointed directly towards Nepgear specifically, a stern stoicism making its way onto Uni's face.

"Nepgear… I want us to have a duel. Whoever comes out victorious gets to have the hematite." The HDD powered Uni declared, the power in her eyes showing the pure determination the girl held. "I need to defeat you fair and square Nepgear, no matter what."

The air was tense as they all turned to Nepgear, the girl keeping her head bowed as her fingers began poking one another. After a pregnant silence however, the girl's eyes rose to reveal a true confidence within them, something that was rarely seen within the CPU candidate of Planeptune.

"I mean, I thought we weren't going to be angry at one another anymore…" she admittedly, the light covering her own body despite Bauen's shouted protests. "But, if this is what you really want more than anything else… I have no intention of holding back. I can't – I won't lose ever again! To you or to anyone else!"

And so began the CPU Candidate battle, one that could ultimately decide the fate of Gamindustri.

* * *

 **And we'll pause things there for now! As i said before, there are some new forms that I would like to introduce like I did with ex-aid and I will be adding twists to the power ups as well like before. We're building up to that though, so please stay tuned for the next chapter!**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	6. 6 - the Sisters' duel

**Hello people! We're back again and this time, it's time for a CPU Candidate battle! This will bring an end to our time in Lastation for now and then we move onto something a little bit interesting: Genmeer, the land of Midnight Majesty. That's where I can intrduce a few more unique sections, but for now, I suppose I'll just have to include a big change at the end... anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: Takumi, the heavens call your name. Will you be like Issei and answer the call?_

 _Takumi: Ah, the CPU Candidates are fighting! Aren't they meant to be the leaders of your world!?  
_

 _Bauen: This has a chance to devolve into war... but they wouldn't be so idiotic._

 _Takumi: You underestimate the power of a catfight!_

 _B + T: Rider once more! The story begins!_

* * *

" _A war has erupted between Lastation and Planeptune over the immense power within the mascots. In order to settle the conflict, the CPU Candidate of Planeptune, Nepgear, and the CPU Candidate of Lastation, Uni, engage in a one-on-one proxy battle. As weapons are drawn, how will this dramatic showdown end?"_

" _Bauen, don't go calling this a war! You make it sound like the two landmasses are gathering their armies!"_

" _IF, please realise that if any were to see the two CPU Candidates battling, there is a chance that this could result in a war. And don't interrupt the chapter introduction!"_

" _I wouldn't have to interrupt your intro if you were actually telling people the truth!"_

" _You have to admit though, two young girls are fighting because they're being petty doesn't exactly have the same flair."_

" _That's not the point! Since when did you do this sort of thing anyway!?"_

" _What will happen in Chapter six? We start now!"_

" _Hey, don't ignore me!"_

* * *

Purple sister smashed against Black Sister, the lack of distance preventing Uni from being able to fire off a proper shot. That didn't stop the white haired girl from slamming the side of her weapon into Nepgear however, the unexpected strike sending the girl flying sideways as Uni aimed the barrel of her weapon.

"Here it comes!" the blast was strong, but the wings that fluttered from Nepgear's back weren't just for decoration, their energy form wavering slightly as part of their power was shot downward. Considering how the CPU Candidate of Planeptune was on her back, it meant that she was sent hurtling backwards and away from the newly formed crater. "I will beat you!"

Of course, Uni too had the ability to fly and soon there were bullets flying in all sorts of directions, but whereas the sword required constant movement to remain in close range, a gun usually had their user stationary when firing. Noire had done all she could to kick the bad habits from Uni when she was placed into real world situations, but her training with a gun had been down to the Lastation security and they usually were in teams that could surround and shoot rather than have to constantly move and attack a target moving at similar speeds. It left her unable to keep up and it wasn't long before she felt the piercing strikes of her counterpart.

Nepgear wasn't without her own issues however. No matter how she may have acted, Uni was still one of her few friends and no girl truly wished harm upon their friend even in a situation like this. Her strikes were hesitant and though the Purple sister tried her hardest to prevent it, there was slight tremble to her arm. There was just a brief second where that trembling proved to strong and her attack missed at the last moment, a perfect excuse for Uni to blow Nepgear to the ground with a back shot.

It was clear to Bauen that this was definitely not the greatest battle either of the two could produce. With Nepgear's natural hesitance and the disadvantage Uni's weapon had against her, they weren't even close to reaching their full potential; it was just a petty duel so that one could earn at least some semblance of vengeance for an act that was falsely blamed. He couldn't blame them though – there was a certain therapeutic aftereffect of fighting that could make bonds stronger, they would undoubtedly come out with a stronger friendship than before. Hopefully.

"Uni's still hurt from what I did before. It limits her movements." The man commented as he watched the girl nearly stumble with her aim. The battle they had before still left its wounds, she had yet to visit any form of healing facility. "I believe she immediately left for this job straight after we last met her…"

Very soon, Uni collapsed to the ground, the flash of light having both girls return to their normal forms while Nepgear touched down against the ground. Sure, she too was panting and heavily scratched, but she was the victor of their arduous battle. No words were to be given as with a final look towards Nepgear, the girl made her escape before any could catch up to her. With a frown to their faces, the only thing they could do was return to the Lastation Basilicom, though Compa was quick to look over Nepgear.

"Ge-Ge… did you actually want to do that?" the nurse in training asked, said girl simply looking to the ground as they walked.

That response was answer enough.

* * *

"So, we meet again. It's nice to see that you even managed to collect all of the materials requested."

"Geez, big brother much?" IF mumbled as she handed the materials they had gathered over to the silver haired Oracle. The girl made a show of inspecting each and every part of it, an accident yet immense sign of disrespect and distrust, but eventually she pocketed the ores with a firm smile.

"Miss Kei, could you tell us where to find the Mascot now? It's been so long and we need to hurry…" Nepgear requested, bouncing lightly from foot to foot and yet the oracle of Lastation instead chose to wave her off casually.

"Well, if you've been waiting for that long, surely a few more moments won't hurt, correct? These few minutes won't impact the information tremendously." Kei answered as she brushed herself off with a cough. "First, I would like to hear more about what happened three years ago in the Gamindustri graveyard and just how exactly you found yourself in current company."

The dig was clear and a growling Bauen was about to step forward if it hadn't have been for the hands that simultaneously chose to hold him back. A single wrong move now could end up compromising everything they had done up to this point, something that the older man was unhappy to concede to. With the story told in a manner that meant a certain someone didn't have to write the whole thing down, Kei gave a short nod of approval, though her smile betrayed her professionalism.

"So Noire is still alive then, I see. It's definitely a weight of my shoulders." Kei sighed, a scoff escaping IF at the statement.

"Really? If you were that worried, then don't you think you could've been a tad more cooperative?" the brunette agent countered with folded arms, the only answer given by the oracle being a shrug of her shoulders.

"You have your priorities and I have my own when it comes to saving our CPU. It's just that where you needed information to proceed, I required certain materials that I would've struggled to find had it not been for your assistance." Kei explained, a quick rummage through her pockets having a piece of paper and pen rapidly put to work. "Now, it's time for me to fulfil my side of our agreement. These are the last known whereabouts of the Mascot."

"Thank you, thank you so much! now we can finally…" but before the purple haired girl could follow on with her speech, a sudden hand was wrapped tightly around her arm, Kei's blue eyes staring deep into her own with clear warning.

"Let me tell you this here and now; there's a very high chance of your request being denied outright." She warned, a pointed turn of her eyes towards Bauen with no attempt at subtlety whatsoever. "You'll find out exactly what I mean soon enough. I wish you luck with your negotiations."

Following the directions led them deep into Septent Resort once more, far beyond what was typically viewed as the resort area into a place infested with a greater number of monsters and more tattered surroundings. The luxurious aspects of the area slowly faded away to give way to ruin and wrecks, a similar looking area found by Nepgear resembling that of where they managed to first find a mascot and indeed, the disc was laying there in rest until it felt their arrival.

"Hmmm? Planeptune's CPU…? No, the candidate…" the Mascot muttered, a clear drowsiness to her words that had Bauen humming in concern.

"There is a difference in shares when it comes to Planeptune and Lastation; I fear the worse situations effect the Mascots and drain them of their energy." The man muttered, bowing down onto a single knee. "Mascot, we wish to borrow your powers. Would it be possible for you to lend us your strength?"

"How sudden of you. Do you truly believe that I would follow your words without a single moment to confirm your intentions?" the Mascot countered, never straying from the odd mixture of curiosity and drowsiness. It made for a calming and yet oddly alarming tone, one that had Bauen n his toes throughout.

"The CPUs are all being held captive in the Gamindustri Graveyard, we need your help in order to rescue them all!" Nepgear was quick to explain, hugging herself tightly as she looked imploringly towards the Mascot. The lack of a face certainly made making eye contact more difficult. There was a moment of silence from the Mascot for it to formulate its response.

"I see… I indeed sensed some odd fluctuations, but hearing that every CPU has been captured is a sock to the system…" the Mascot mused, Nepgear's happiness near visibly rising, only to be immediately deflated by the next statement. "If it is true however, that only would strengthen my argument as to not accompany you. After all, it is my sole purpose to protect this nation during the absence of the CPU and leaving now would result in the nation losing any and all divine protection it still has remaining. That would be an unallowable result; it is part of the pact we Mascots made with the true goddess."

"So you're saying that you're fine with letting the CPUs remain in captivity?" IF answered, the brunette growling slightly at the lack of tone change. At first, it seemed like it was a result of the share issue, but now it just seemed like the Mascot wasn't giving a single damn about the situation at all!

"As I said, my purpose is merely to act in proxy in the CPU's absence. It is not my job to stage a rescue attempt." The Mascot countered unwaveringly. "Just as a computer would continue to function should their owner be indisposed, so must I continue fulfilling my purpose."

Their little conversation meant that they weren't aware of a black mouse snooping about the entire images of the love of his life still flashing within his eyes as he desperately searched. So far, every area Warechu had searched managed to come up short, but this time? This was the golden moment!

"This is the only location left to search chu…" Warechu sighed, faltering in his steps as his heart pounded to the beat of drums. "Oh my lovely Compa, we've been apart ever since that fateful day… Why did I run? Damn my shyness chu!"

Warechu fell to the ground, the result of having not eaten during the entirety of his feverish search resulting in his vision going blurry. As he started on ahead, it was almost as if she was standing right there, just before him as she did so when they first met.

"Hehe, I guess I miss her so much I'm starting to hallucinate chu. My sweet angel Compa chu…" and then he blinked. She was still there. And so was the other girls and the weird old man, they were all there! "That's no hallucination! That's Compa! My lovely angel chu!"

"Oh…? Ah, it's Mister Mouse!" Compa cried out their attention momentarily disturbed by the sudden arrival. Despite the conversation they were having, the nurse in training was more than happy to hop over to the lovesick animal, Warechu near preening under the girl's attention.

"You… remember me? That makes me so happy chu!" the mouse exclaimed in sheer joy, though the moment was somewhat broken when Bauen grabbed the creature by the scruff of his neck, Warechu kicking like mad in a vain attempt to break out of the grip.

"In case you didn't notice, we were somewhat in the middle of something." The elderly man growled out. "Now, keep quiet and wait your turn, this is important business you know."

"You shut up chu! There's nothing more important in this word than Compa!" Warechu argued, beating hopelessly on the man's arm with all of the fury that a love struck mouse could summon in such a tiny body. It was as the rider was preparing to throw the animal when Warechu caught a glimpse of the disc watching silently at the side, a tone of confusion entering his voice. "W-wait! Is that the Mascot!?"

"You know about the Mascots Mister Mouse?" Compa asked, but for all of the attention Warechu had put on the nurse in training, the black mouse completely ignored her in favour of staring at the Mascot floating just before the group.

"I'm so lucky, stumbling upon my angelic Compa and the Mascot at the same time!" the mouse chirped out, turning (at least, doing what was as close to turning as possible when you were being held by the scruff of your neck in the air) towards Compa with a smile. "I have a great idea Compa! Let's beat the crap out of the Mascot together chu! If we smash the Mascot, then we get a massive reward and if you help my dear Compa, I'll help you join ASIC as a VIP member."

"Don't do something mean like that Mister Mouse! If you beat up the Mascot, then all of Gamindustri will…!" Compa began to object, though the mouse wasn't able to fully comprehend the rest as the hand that was tightly gripping his neck suddenly loosened, barely a sigh able to escape Warechu before the noise was altered into some incoherent blabber. Warechu's tail did make for the perfect grip as Bauen repeatedly slammed the mouse into the ground and upward, a few smashes being all that was needed before the black mouse wasn't in the mood for tempting his loved one.

"Right, that's enough out of you. Now scram; we don't need any more interruption time." The rider dismissed, a casual toss sending the mouse flying backwards with a light thud. Compa did wince at the act, but her next words summed up the situation fairly well:

"Sorry Mister Mouse, but I've been travelling with my friends in order to save the CPUs, so I guess… I guess that makes us enemies."

"Dun-dun-duuunnnn! Enemies… so are you telling me that you don't like me that way?" the mouse dramatically sighed, complete with a hand to his forehead as the nurse's stance tightened.

"That's right! I really hate bad monsters and bad people and anyone that wants to make Gamindustri a bad place!"

"H-h-hate!? You really hate me!? Boo-hoo-hoo-chu!" it was a heavy strike to his heart that burned far worse than the repeated smashes against the ground. Plucking up as much power as he could, Warechu met the eyes of each and every party member there, a new power entering his muscles. "All my passion has been wasted chu! I suppose there's nothing left to do except channel all that passion into defeating you, in the name of ASIC chu!"

At the mouse's words, a giant Fenrir burst to life before them, the dark furred beast letting out an earth shaking growl as it stomped down on the ground. How Warechu had managed to obtain such a beast, no one could tell but as Nepgear let herself transform into her HDD form, Bauen could only let out a weary sigh.

"Why can't we ever have an easy time?"

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **TANK!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **HAGANE NO MOONSAULT! RABBIT-TANK! YEAH!**_

A quick leap had the man jumping on top of the beast, a firm shove having the drillcrusher piercing into the flesh of the Fenrir. Of course, it wasn't exactly going to remain still, thrashing about in an attempt to remove the annoying little creature upon its back. The erratic movements made striking anywhere close a fatal risk, IF resorting to her pistols as she and Compa gave the support fire they could.

"Alright then, I suppose this wasn't exactly my best idea…" Bauen was tempted to turn on the drill, but anything that could risk his dislodgement at this point would have him vulnerable in the air. Unfortunately for him then, it was at that time that his weapon chose to pluck itself out of the thrashing Fenrir's skin, sending the man flying away with a swipe of claws as he fell before the beast. It was only Purple Sister catching him that prevented him from smashing against the ground. "So we're dealing with a tough one are we? I might just have an idea."

 _ **ROSE!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

With a thorned whip wrapping around the creature, it was now down to Compa, IF and the rider o hold the Fenrir in place, said creature trying its absolute best to escape its new restraints. Nepgear however was too busy piercing it full of holes however, the Fenrir's attempts weakening the longer it remained within the rose born whip.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX ATTACK! YEAH!**_

"Excuse me!" as soon as the Fenrir reached its weakest point, Bauen began rapidly backing up, his feet leaving tread marks with every time his right foot met the ground. With Compa slamming her needle into the beast with as much strength as the girl could muster, IF dashing forward with burning strikes from her Quatars and Nepgear quite literally flying sword first _through_ the monster, it was left to the rider to leap into the air, the treads on his right foot turning as the whip started to retract and sent the man flying directly through the Fenrir with a large explosion.

"Oof… I lose the game of love, I fail at my job… this is the worst day of my life chu!"Warechu cried out as he ran for his life, his little stature meaning he could easily sneak through the places where a running IF couldn't grab him. a snarl escaped the brunette as she returned to the group empty handed, the Mascot disc floating up once more.

"So that is one of the monstrosities that plague the land?" the Mascot enquired, IF nodding.

"Yeah and now the stupid rat knows where you are." The agent added. "Sooner or later, it'll be back with a whole bunch more monsters and maybe we won't be here to help you out."

"I understand. I suppose then it will be in my best interests to find a place to hide myself."

"Why don't you come with us? That way, we could keep you safe and hidden and if anyone did find out about you, we would be there to fight." Nepgear suggested, an audible sigh escaping the Mascot. While there were some who had sought her out for power, there were few who actually managed to find it and less who were so persistent upon it; this CPU Candidate was certainly a unique one.

"I have already said such a request cannot be granted."

"You're no longer speaking on a Landmass scale you know? You're willing leaving a world to be destroyed simply because you refused to have any part in helping it." Bauen whispered as he knelt down beside the Mascot. There wasn't really an ear to whisper into, but the side of the Mascot sort of worked, right? "You're not pressing the detonation button, but you're sure not pressing the abort button either. Sure, you could continue to sit here, wallowing away thinking your own power is enough while others go and risk their lives, but when those men and women are dead and the monsters are coming to your door, what do you do then? You're a Disc; _you don't even have hands to fight back with._ "

"…So, no matter how hard one tries, some things simply cannot be protected without action." The Mascot eventually muttered after a moment of silence, the elder rider picking himself off the ground with a nod. "I cannot abandon this nation. I cannot break the pact I made with the true goddess… What I can do is offer you my power, while my physical form remains here. Though I can grant you little else CPU Candidate, kamen rider, please use this to help save Gamindustri."

A light drifted from the Mascot into an astonished Nepgear, a second orb quickly filling an empty bottle until it took on a green hue.

"A USB memory bottle is it? I'll make sure that when we face the leader behind this, I'll shove its power right into their face." Bauen promised with a chuckle, though it faded as the Mascot floated towards him after the rest of the group started to make their way back.

"Your sins still weight heavily upon your back, don't they? Do not fret; your actions to me are penance enough."

"Dear Mascot, no actions could be penance enough."

* * *

"Well done. I'm surprised to hear that such a stubborn Mascot agreed to lend you its power." Kei greeted as the group made their way into the Basilicom, a smile upon the usually cold oracle's face. "Will you be requiring me to make a report of the situation?"

"Well, we came to deliver the report, so might as well do it. It'd be really awesome if you just let us handle it all." IF denied, to a shrug from the oracle. Wasn't exactly a difficult task, to do nothing.

"We'll be leaving soon, but would it be possible to see Uni one last time?" Nepgear requested, eliciting a snort of all things from the oracle before the action actually registered in her kind and she covered her mouth, hoping a cough could disguise her actions.

"Well, it really has to be her decision if she wishes to see you." Kei slowly spoke, half of her attention put to supressing the blush of embarrassment that threatened to mar her face. Hopefully the next revelation would be able to draw some of the attention off her. "She did dramatically dive underneath my desk the very moment you stepped in after all."

"Hey, don't be a snitch!" but it was too late, for Nepgear was already trotting her merry way towards the desk. The lack of time for the black haired CPU Candidate to escape also meant that she was stuck curled into a ball beneath the desk – not exactly the most flattering of positions to be found in. "Uh, h-hi Nepgear…"

"I know I asked already, but Uni. Won't you please come with us and help rescue our sisters?"

"No! At least… not yet." In a second, Uni's body slumped as she looked far wearier than she had ever done in the rest of her life, Nepgear's face falling as well. The CPU Candidate of Lastation had proven herself unworthy of joining their team so many times already; until she could get stronger, there was no way she could've joined their team without being a burden. However, it was in that moment where the melancholic mood suddenly grew worse as tears began to fall from Nepgear's eyes, the girl stumbling backwards as Uni let out a startled cry. "Hey, w-what are you crying for!?"

"B-because, we became good friends… but all we ever do is fight! And now, and now we'll never be BFFs…" the puppy dog eyes – a girl's worst technique, even against other girls. You could almost hear Uni's resolve cracking under the adorable assault from her purple counterpart, a quick slap to the black girl's own face proving to her that yes, this was indeed happening.

"You know our spat had nothing to do with that! A-and you're talking as if we'll never see each other anyway!"

"Really? So… you wanna hang out later?"

"Tch, well, maybe when I feel like it, maybe I'll… you know, think about it a little. Maybe."

"Really? For really reals!? It's a promise, okay!?"

"I, I said if I feel like it, not… urgh! Fine, fine, I promise, okay?" a small sharp yelp coming from the Black Sister had both of their attention drawn to where Bauen's eyes could be seen from underneath the desk, only a slight bit of struggle showing as his upside down hands messed with the rapidly morphing bottle of black in his hands.

"My apologies you two, but it didn't seem as if you were going to get out from under that desk for a while." The rider remarked, a slight push having him fall to the ground from his dangling position off the front of the desk, a move which meant he couldn't see the blush that came over Uni's face as she scrambled to come out. "Just as I expected, you two have the pure power to form a instantly purified bottle. A… crosshair, so… shooter? Gun? I'll figure it out eventually."

"Although it was necessary, I do apologise for having kept you here for so long. Best of luck on your travels, wherever they take you." Kei said with a bow, IF letting out a small chuckle.

"Don't say things like that. You creep me out anytime you say anything remotely selfless." IF joked, though it did little to effect the white haired oracle's face.

"I wish you luck because I foresee some projected difficulties you could have with the Genmeer and Lowee CPU Candidates." Kei remarked, Nepgear simply giving her a firm smile in response.

"Don't worry about it; we have to do this, for the CPUs!"

* * *

"Are you finally done with what you wanted to make Bauen?" Compa asked as they relaxed in her house. While the others had used the older man's request to return to the land of Purple Progress for some down time, Bauen had immediately ventured deep into the city, rummaging through the various shops like a madman before retreating into the Basilicom's labs on a surprised Histoire's permission. The man almost looked like Santa upon his return, hefting a giant sack upon his back, though the frown did ruin it slightly.

"My apologies, but I wasn't going to work on my plans in a nation that would be more than happy to steal my ideas if they ever found out what I was planning and it simply couldn't wait any longer than it had to." Bauen explained as he hefted the sack onto the table, Compa's little furniture seeming positively tiny underneath his work. "This little adventure of ours has proven that we need countermeasures in case one of us gets disabled and sometimes, we might face problems we couldn't expect. Hopefully, some of this stuff will help us deal with the potential scenarios."

The odd sound of a roar combining with music filled the living room as an even stranger creature flew out of the bag, circling around above them to the rest of the quartet's amazement. Coloured black, blue and yellow, the creature held a draconic appearance save for the odd construction of its torso, the window and cavity clearly made to hold something within itself.

"Meet the Cross Dragon. Should any of us prove to be unable to fight, the Cross Dragon will be able to defend you and if you add a bottle into its holder, you can also amplify its fire based powers." The rider explained with a content grin. "I saw Red and her dragon and it simply inspired me; should Nepgear or anyone be unable to fight, what else should defend them other than a dragon? The bottle I received from the tulips we fought in Planeptune managed to purify into a dragon bottle anyway, so it all really just lined up."

He's kind of cute!" Nepgear giggled as the Cross dragon flew around her, a cry of happiness escaping the small creation. Without a word however, it folded up its neck and tail before falling into the girl's lap, the CU Candidate almost missing the blue bottle that flew towards her from Bauen's hand. "So have you managed to get any other bottles?"

"Considering all of the monsters we faced with the odd energy, quite a few." And indeed, there was a fair number of them lined up on the table, a plethora of colours and images depicted upon them as Bauen observed each one before feeling content placing them down. "A peach, a dancer, a bear, a heart, a die, an armadillo, a conductor – you name it. Of course, haven't confirmed if any of them are a best match, yet, thought I would leave it to the person using them."

There was a round of confusion at the man's words before Bauen pulled out his final item, that confusion turning into shock upon the offering being pushed in Nepgear's direction. Her acceptance was hesitance and it took a couple of glances between the man and back before she actually could speak.

"A… a copy of your belt?"

"When you can't access your powers as a CPU Candidate, you're one of the weaker fighters, I'm sorry Nepgear. With this, you have a backup in case you aren't able to transform normally." Bauen explained, placing his hands into his pockets. "IF, Compa, you're used to not having a transformation to fall back upon, that's the only reasons why I haven't got something for you yet. Now Nepgear, why don't you try a transformation?"

"Y-you want me to transform? Right here?" the girl squeaked out, but the elder rider was already ushering her to her feet, the driver placed at her waist sending the yellow belt winding around her slim figure to IF's smirk.

"Come on Gear, give it a whirl. You've seen Bauen do it a whole bunch of times, what's the worst that could happen?" the agent urged, Compa nodding excitedly beside her. There wasn't really a choice as Nepgear made her way over to the various bottles, plucking the pink peach and white dancer bottles from their positions on the table. A quick shake had the liquids held within stimulated, the lids being closed with a pop before the purple haired girl placed them within the Build driver.

 _ **DANCER!**_

 _ **PEACH!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"Wow, Ge-Ge managed to get a best match on her first try!" Compa cheered with applause at the sound, Nepgear left looking at the waist mounted device in surprise before a resolute visage took over her face. There couldn't be any regrets at this moment, not when her friends were expecting her to succeed. Grabbing a hold of the red lever, Bauen was quick to step back as the girl started cranking, though like the Ex-aid transformation, no actual pipes formed.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"H-henshin!"

 _ **FRESH!**_

"What?" Nepgear's hair lifted almost as if she was going through her HDD transformation, though rather than turning lighter, it split apart into two, hearts appearing close to her head to turn the flowing strands into a pair of pigtails reaching the back of her things, light blonde. A hot pink choker appeared around the girl's neck as a blink turned lilac eyes into pink as well, two heart shaped earrings popping onto her ears. The girl's normal attire was replaced by a darker pink dress with lighter ribbon upon both sides and lining her chest, a bright skirt bursting outward layered with white beneath. Pink boots were the next to come as two bands made their way around Nepgear's wrist, the transformation complete with a four leaf clover appearing upon her heart. "This is…"

"Ge-Ge, you're a magical girl!" Compa was surprisingly enthusiastic about the transformation, happily hopping around Nepgear in a mad attempt to absorb everything she could about her new outfit, Bauen and IF a bit more contemplative in their analysis of the CPU Candidate's unique dress.

"The vocal synthesiser system didn't form a phrase for this transformation, just like the Ex-aid form; that makes me feel like this is a reproduction of an already existing transformation." The man enquired, paper being hastily scrawled on as the man began plotting down every single theory he could produce off the top of his head. "These essences however were formed from different sources however and the lids formed different letters, meaning that this isn't their normal best match…"

"Wait, if your belt can call upon a CPU's power… do you think these could be the forms of other CPUs? CPUs we don't know about?" the Guild agent suggested, something that had Bauen sitting ramrod straight. If that were true, then they had potentially stumbled upon both a technological and historic masterpiece; any person would be able to call upon the power of a CPU with enough resistance training! "…Bauen…? Does the driver hold the same power that you used… before?"

The man tried his best to hide the discomfort he felt at the question, but IF was a fully trained agent – there was no way she was going to ignore the slight twitch to his movements.

"The power that resulted in the incident isn't present in either Build driver. Hopefully, it is gone for good." Bauen sighed, absently tapping his pencil against the paper." If I was the cause of a second coming of that event… why, I would welcome your swords to my stomach without hesitation. Can I confirm you would do that?"

It wasn't a light question by any mean, but IF still was quick to give a soft nod. The two more emotional of their little group were preoccupied by Compa pushing the transformed Nepgear out of her house for a more full testing of her abilities, the brunette instead choosing to walk over to the nurse in training's cupboard and prepare a tea set of all things.

"I was ready to arrest you the moment I laid eyes on you. After all, though you've changed so much since that time, your bounty was never taken off you head – the only reason people haven't tried coming after you is the fact many believe you to already be dead." IF recalled, clutching a cup tightly. "But then you've done all of this in the name of your Landmass. You've used a power you once held to destroy the place in order to protect it and my mind becomes… confused."

"Power does terrible things to your mind. The moment I took off my helmet, I was only able to see a horrifying field of destruction. Before I took off my helmet… I could only see things that threatened to get in my way, that wanted me restrained and saw nothing save for their own personal gain." Bauen admitted in response, the tea not exactly as hard as he would've liked. "This is my chance to redeem myself for my sins. Those I killed, those who owned that which I destroyed… they deserve far more than I could ever do; I have a lot of work cut out for me."

"You're doing a good job of it so far. Rescued Gear's life and now you're giving her stuff to protect herself even better than she could before. Don't think I didn't catch how you said 'yet' either." The agent lightly laughed, Bauen reciprocating. "Are you ready to try out Genmeer then? Maybe it will be a bit easier than the others."

"After the warning Kei gave us? Trust me IF, when you're in the company of a CPU Candidate and a criminal with a bounty upon his head, you will never get a normal trip!" with the mood lightened, the pair watched through the window as energy blast flew about, Compa orchestrating the entire thing like a hyperactive child. No one would believe the backstories of the group if they told someone, but that was just the way Bauen like it.

"Perhaps… perhaps I could actually get a peaceful life for once."

* * *

 **And I suppose we'll stop things there for now! Yep, things only get crazier from here as we enter Genmeer; the melancholic idol and her two hunters! Yep, Nepgear is now a scientifically induced magical girl because why the hell not? I was originally going to give it to either Compa or IF, but I have something else planned for them in the future. What? Stick around and find out!**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	7. 7 - the idol invasion

**Hey there folks! Today, we dive deeper into how things started with more origin flashbacks, yeah! Also, i had what i thought would be a fun idea for a special upgrade, but then the Evol Driver just had to go and ruin it, didn't it? Oh well, I'm still going to implement it when the time comes, so please look forward to that! Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!  
_

 _Bauen: Flee for your life; the Flamebringer seeks your end._

 _Lilith: Welcome to the land of Midnight Majesty! Time for a performance by... who are those people!?_

 _Bauen: I suppose we both have fierce fights to deal with. I shall give it my all._

 _Lilith: How can you be so calm about this!?_

 _B + L: Rider once more! Don't forget me!_

* * *

Compared to the more technological appearance of Lastation and Planeptune, Genmeer held a much more natural appearance to it. The main city was almost Victorian with its incredible architecture, cobbled streets and steampunk theme to the various technologies within sight; considering the Landmass was one of the newest, it was trying its hardest to look like the oldest, but it did little to deter any person from admiring its design.

"So, what do we know about the CPU Candidate of Genmeer?" Bauen asked over the dull roar of their engines, the group approaching the city in good time – the day was still young, meaning they would have the majority of the day to do a bit of exploring before they got to work. "I don't seem to recall much about him at all."

"Not many people can, he's kept to himself a lot over the years except for when he absolutely has to make a public presence." IF explained, a quick relax of the handlebars having both bikes down to a more acceptable urban speed. "Apparently though, he's very laid back, whimsical; spends most of his time in his games and occasionally goes about calling himself Mighty Brother rather than his appropriate title. I think the hotel's over there."

With a view of the park filled with excited children and their parents trying their best to pretend they weren't just as excited, the room they were given was one of the most beautiful Bauen could've imagined. The sheer number of people however wasn't natural, even for a beautiful day, something that had IF's interest immediately piqued as soon as she took a single glance towards one of her many phones.

"5pb's holding a performance in the park! With this window, we should have a perfect view!" the brunette cheered out, Bauen collapsing to the floor with a less than graceful sound as the excited agent took her own place at the open window, Compa letting out a giggle at the sight. "She should be starting any moment now!"

"Hehe, Iffy's a really big fan of 5pb. You can't tell, but whenever she isn't working, she's keeping up with the latest news about her shows!" the pink haired girl explained, gleefully fleeing when a pillow found itself being lobbed in her direction.

"I've never been one for idols really, but there are a more than a few shining diamonds." The man absently responded, taking a seat upon the bed while the other girls crowded around the window. If he were to try and force his way in, there would be no space left; might as well leave it to people who were more desperate to see her.

A blue haired girl stepped elegantly out onto the stage; not the most glamourous of set ups, but the idol still seemed perfectly in her element, perhaps even happier at the sight. Her outfit, a black skirt and bikini top, exposed a large amount of skin to the glistening sun including the music note that was tattooed upon her midriff, her pale skin appearing almost ethereal as pink eyes glittered with confidence.

"Hey everyone, I'm so happy you could come out to see me!" the idol called out, a rapturous cheer answering her. "Shall we get things started then? Allow me to sing… _Kuroneko._ "

 _Kono mama kizukanai no?_

 _Sore datte kamawanai to chikatta no ni_

 _Sono koe nioi ga chikazuite kuru to_

 _Kakedashiteiru_

 _Onaji kotoba hanashi onaji hoshi miteita koro_

 _Tonari ni ireba sore dake de_

 _Ai ni akubi suru koneko ni nareta ki ga shita_

 _Toori suginaide onegai BOKU wa koko ni iru yo_

 _KIMI ni deau sono tame ni umareta yo_

 _Negai no hoshi ga nagareta SORA de_

 _Tooku natteku KIMI no kage hashitte oikakeru_

 _Todoku you ni koe no kagiri ni naku yo_

 _Douka furimuite hoshii kono kiseki ni_

 _Ano hi no BOKU wa miteta_

 _mori no naka nando mo nando mo_

 _Doukoku ni yureta senaka_

 _Toki wa sugi KIMI wa subete wasurete shimatta_

 _BOKU ga ita sekai nante kioku no kanata he_

 _Sou BOKU datte negatteta kedo_

 _Toori suginaide onegai BOKU wa koko ni iru yo_

 _KIMI ni deau sono tame ni umareta yo_

 _Negai no hoshi ga nagareta SORA de_

 _Mou chikara tsukite ii to hashitte oikakete_

 _Karanda ashi namida nado naku naita_

 _Kowaresou na kage dake ga shiru kiseki ni..._

"5pb used to operate mostly in Leanbox, but pretty soon after Genmeer was established, she ended up making more of her shows here." IF absently added on, eyes entranced by the near flawless girl singing her heart out on the simple stage. "She's the Siren of Genmeer, the best performer out of all of Gamindustri! But… recently, her songs have gotten a lot sadder and she doesn't seem to have the same energy as before."

"Thanks everybody!" 5pb yelled out with a melancholy little grin, hand held out in a victory sign as the audience didn't seem they would ever stop clapping. "I hope you ready to keep that energy up, because next up, it's time for Dim-!"

But before the girl could finish her exclamation, an explosion rocking the area behind her sent the idol hurtling forward into the crowd, Bauen immediately making a beeline for the window as soon as the sound rocketed through the hotel. Out of the settling dust, two figures in black and Egyptian blue stepped out, synthetic voices laughing at the rushing crowds.

"See the girl we're after?" the figure in black asked, the man (at least, it seemed like a man) slouching against the side of the stage. Several wires stretched across his torso and arms, all connecting to the various golden pipes that lined the chest plate emblazoned with a silver crescent moon, just like the shimmering one that made up the visor beneath a horn like exhaust. "The idol can't have run off that far."

"There's the little waif – idiot decided to hide around the corner!" the blue person laughed out, a gun of black and silver shooting the ground before the terrified idol. While they too shared the wires that ran down the torso and arm, the golden chest plate instead held the image of a demonic face in crimson, the same shade making a jagged visor over the front of their helmet. "Come on out little girl."

 _ **ARMADILLO!**_

 _ **DIE!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

Neither figure were prepared for the transforming hero that launched out of the hotel window, leg stretched out as the armour formed around him. one side was yellow, an armadillo rolled up into a ball to form the eye on one side while the other was a side of a die, the yellow half's pattern appearing like that of an armadillo's armour while the other had a die for a shoulder, the rest being white.

 _ **MAWARI NO HIGH ROLLER! ARMADILLO-DIE! YEAH!**_

"It's you… Kamen Rider Build." The blue clad figure remarked as they turned away from the kick, hands held out wide; they didn't believe him to be as threat so much that they were intentionally leaving themselves open. "We've been expecting you! Allow me to introduce ourselves: I am Terror Burst and my friend here is Star Blazing. Tell me, will you be able to protect the girl from two people who outmatch you in every single way?"

 _ **ROLLING AXE!**_

"Got to give it a go!" twin pipes wrapping around each other produced an axe with a buzz saw for a blade, the saw holding the same Armadillo inspired imagery while the handle was done in white save for a section of the bottom and a window, currently showing the number one. It was produced just in time to stop the black, silver and yellow blade that threatened to slice the man in two, sparks flying as Bauen began to back up. It was enough time for Nepgear to join the fray, though the black fighter, Star Blazing, was quick to intercept with a shot from his own version of the silver and black pistol. "I will admit, I've never seen fighters like you before. Your power is beyond what I expected."

"Come on then, let's make this a little bit more interesting little girl!" Star Blazing taunted as Nepgear struggled to even land a hit on the man – his speed was far too extraordinary for a human being, that was for certain. Almost hopping back as if he was taunting a child, it didn't take long before the armoured figure got bored of his routine, several shots from his pistol sending Nepgear back with a cry. "You can do more than that right? I know that man and he's given you something else you can fight with… how about I try this?"

A device the Purple Sister had little chance of examining was thrown down to the ground, the wave that emanated off it sending Nepgear down to her knees with a cry, bursts of light having her return to her normal form. Bauen, seeing the girl's vulnerable position, dashed over, a pull on the bottom part of his weapon having the number in the window rapidly changing until it settled upon a three.

 _ **ROLL THREE!**_

The call charged the buzz saw axe with energy and as Bauen smashed against Terror Burst, the warrior was forced to back away, leaving him just enough time to turn to the girl and point to his own belt; there were few more words needed before he was back to battle and the girl was already moving.

 _ **DANCER!**_

 _ **PEACH!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **FRESH!**_

Now completely changed, Nepgear leapt forward, Star Blazing backing away as they batted the punches and kicks that came in their direction. A second's hesitation however meant that sparks were flying from the defending invader's body, a light grunt escaping them as Nepgear sent them flying back with a punch.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

"Love Sunshine!" a pink beam shot from Nepgear's hand, a huge cloud of burning smoke erupting from where Star Blazing stood. Not to be outmatched, Bauen pulled the handle of his buzz saw axe once more, the centre number spinning rapidly before the weapon was charged with energy.

 _ **ROLL SIX!**_

 _ **VORTEX BREAK!**_

The second explosion enveloping the attackers had Bauen pause for a brief moment, jogging over to where Nepgear stood with her hands on her knees. The power required to sustain the transformation seemed… different to what she usually used when activating HDD, but considering how trained she had been with her second form, it was only understandable that this would be less refined. When the smoke cleared however, Nepgear was, albeit slightly weaker, raising her arms up ready to fight once more. Their two enemies were perfectly fine, barely even a scratch upon their armour as twin silver and black guns aimed towards them.

"Well, looks like you've given it all you have." Terror Burst sighed, casually flipping a small object in their hand, silver and red. "Shame about that, honestly thought you would have something more than that to show after your pretty little display all those years ago."

"How did… A fullbottle!?" and then Star Blazing pulled out one of his own as well, a similar shade even if the image depicted upon their front was different. They slipped into their pistols easier enough, a glow overcoming them as steam enveloped the barrels, Bauen rushing in front of Nepgear in alarm.

 _ **night...!**_

 _ **fear...!**_

"Well then, maybe you'll have better luck in the next life you two!" Terror Burst happily bid farewell, but a sudden wave of yellow pixels at their feet had the blue clad figure turning his shot to the side, man explosion rocking the hotel IF and Compa still remained in. "The Game Brother? No, he barely ever takes a step outside… who are you!?"

 _ **DOREMIFA DJ!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON, LET'S JAM!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON LET'S JAM!**_

"Fiftieth stage!"

 _ **DUAL UP!**_

 _ **HEY-HEY-HEY! DOREMIFA DJ!**_

Several notes shot towards the pair, both Terror Burst and Star Blazing taking far more damage this time than with any attack that Nepgear and Bauen could muster as the physical music exploded within seconds of touching their bodies. Both CPU Candidate and rider turned to where a new rider appeared, bright animated eyes upon a black background with metal strands of azure acting as the hair. The armour itself was a metallic dress of black decorated with pink lining and blue gloves with black fingers, a game HUD like chest plate displayed prominently upon her body with a golden belt in the centre holding a special holder, a yellow, much larger gashat held within.

"I won't let you harm innocent people anymore!" the rider declared, metal pieces reconstructing themselves upon her shoulders until a pair of golden boom boxes sat there, heavy bass shooting outward towards the invading warriors. It wasn't exactly something they could defend against, arms raised up to block proving fruitless as the pair were sent flying back once more. "Get out of here! If I hear you've been messing with civilians again, I won't hold back!"

"Okay then… looks like things are getting interesting." Star Blazing muttered as the two stood up, smoke emanating from the various orifices upon their armours until they disappeared with the final fading wisps, a sharp tut escaping Bauen as he and Nepgear transformed back into normal. With a sigh, the remaining rider let the boom boxes return to pieces and dissolve into pixels.

"You aren't Game Brother, and yet you use a similar power, he uses a tool similar to that of yours." Bauen immediately remarked, stepping before Nepgear with a cautious glint to his eyes. The other rider didn't grace him with a response, but considering the slight nervous stance they took up, they clearly weren't expecting to be questioned somehow. "Tell me, how on earth did you gain access to that? I would expect them to be rather limited."

"Well… it was a special gift." The rider admitted, a synthetic voice making it hard to distinguish the person behind the mask, tapping their fingers together as they turned their face away. "I received it… just before E- Lord Game Heart left to fight against ASIC. I was trusted with keeping the peace of Genmeer!"

It was at that point where IF and Compa rushed back towards the group, far more exhausted than they had been when they initially began to move. While Compa was too busy trying to catch her breath once more, it was up to IF to properly speak to the group.

"We managed to get everyo0ne present safely escorted away towards the Basilicom, they should be making sure that everyone gets back home safe." The agent gasped, wiping a free hand across a moist forehead. "Did you manage to find 5pb? She disappeared into the group, so we don't know if she actually managed to get back safely!"

"We didn't see her. Um, did you?" Nepgear asked to the rider, who was quick to shake their head.

"I was unable to see her at all. As soon as I arrived, I was fighting off those people." It was only as they let themselves calm down slightly however that they noticed the surprising emptiness of the slot at their left hip, looking around in alarm until they found the old man tinkering with the large gashat.

 _ **GASHUUN!**_

"Something tells me we'll have our answer if we just find a way to switch this off." The man mused, twisting the golden dial upon the front of the chunky gashat. "I suppose we would have to switch this to neutral and then…"

"No, please don't do tha-!" but it was too late, for the man was already pressing the button just before the actual cartridge piece of the gashat, a bright light appearing upon the rider before the armour faded away to a mighty sound, leaving only a person that IF openly gaping.

"Wait, 5pb!?" and indeed, once the armour was removed, all that stood there was the meek idol, hands quick to cover her face in abstract embarrassment. Far more tenderly and obviously than he had taken the gashat, Bauen happily returned the idol's property, noting the way she rapidly snatched it back and held it close almost subconsciously. "I think my brain's going to melt… my favourite idol is the mysterious hero of Genmeer."

"'Mysterious hero of Genmeer?' I remember hearing something about that, a hero that popped up relatively soon after Game Heart went off to fight and occassionaly fights monsters the people can't handle." Nepgear remarked, Bauen looking to the blue haired idol with a gently incredulous eye. The girl didn't even look like she was able to withstand a particularly strong breeze, the idea that 5pb could fight against anything more than your common street thug was a strange one indeed. Of course, Nepgear, IF and definitely Compa weren't exactly what people would normally associate with the image of power, but one was a Guild agent, another was a CU Candidate and the other was mostly a nurse – they had all taken their experience and developed it heavily upon the battlefield. If what Nepgear was saying was true, then 5pb only fought very occasionally.

"I want to be able to do more for my nation, but I have a public identity to keep up." 5pb admitted with a blush, waves flying erratically through pink eyes. "Don't tell anyone though! I can barely keep the media off me right now… if they knew that I was also the mysterious Kamen Rider Tune…!"

"When I came here, I definitely was expecting to meet another kamen rider. I must say though, this seems far different than the meeting I hoped for." Bauen was quick to frown when he saw the girl suddenly reach near-tears level, fumbling for a way to correct his mistake. "Not that this is a bad meeting at all. Quite the contrary, this might be more interesting. Tell me, why did Lord Game Heart gift you with a power like his own?"

5pb was far more reluctant to answer that question, curling into herself as her eyes began to fluctuate like mad once more. There wasn't anything he could do, apparently there were some things that couldn't be spoken of yet and considering what had just happened, it would just be rude to push her more than he already had done so.

"I suppose we should retire for now however, clean up the mess we've made here and that sort of thing. Do you want one of us to walk you back to wherever you're staying" the man prompted, a quiet shake of the head having 5pb walking away (walking away being running as fast as she could without being seen as rude) and Bauen rubbing the back of his head. "I do appear quite intimidating to a certain folk, don't I?"

"5pb, the mysterious hero of Genmeer… she's more awesome than I thought!" If slightly squealed as she looked to the direction the idol had fled. "Never expected her to be so shy considering her job though. _Definitely_ considering the fact that she's a fighter as well."

"I guess everyone has their own quirks." Nepgear cheerfully added, looking to the stage before them with a slight grimace. In the furious fleeing of the scene and fight, they had managed to cause quite the mess in the area, pieces upturned and smoke still emanating from where the two odd attackers had disappeared. "This is going to be fun…"

* * *

"You really should be relaxing after that. We've got to deal with Game Brother and he's definitely a handful." If commented, but it was to blocked off ears; Bauen's fingers were barely visible as he rapidly typed away on his laptop, several different plans, blueprints and other documents flashing before his eyes for barely a second before they were gone again. "What on earth are you looking at? I don't understand half of this stuff!"

"Those people, you saw the weapons they were wielding, right?" the old man answered in a distracted manner, his frantic typing pausing for a brief moment in order to scratch at his beard in irritation. "They utilise fullbottles, but not the same kind of fullbottles that I use… that's it! Look at this."

Bauen paid little attention to how Compa and Nepgear gathered around the sofa to peer at the screen as well, the exact same gun as the two were using broken down into individual annotated sections with a variety of crudely drawn fullbottles displayed alongside with a sizeable bunch of text. To any normal person, it would seem like an incredibly difficult to navigate document, but the old man moved across each section with practiced ease.

"It's just I thought, they were using plans originating from my own research." Baune spat, a dark frown coming over his face before a cough had him back in a more reasonable personality. "See, you don't always get a perfect construct first time when you're working with an unknown substance taken from a questionable source – that's just basic engineering. The Transteam system was designed to use fullbottles that weren't entirely purified, but still were prepared enough to establish their own unique element. They've must've been able to steal the original transteam gun and use it to reverse engineer a second one… the question is how they got the essences in order to use the guns as they do; I only created Castle, Kuwagata, Fukurou, Bat, Cobra, Hammer and Shimauma."

"There were those weird monsters that released the stuff for fullbottles, weren't there? Maybe they just used those?" IF remarked, but the old rider was quick to deny her claim.

"You may not have noticed, but when you defeat those monsters, they purify into normal fullbottles because of the bottles themselves, the material absorber built into each bottle absorbs the gas that was released and transforms it into transgel solid." Bauen corrected, the agent merely nodding slowly. "The reason why the bottles weren't entirely purified was because I had to manually purify them with a complex system – it ended up being stronger than normal bottles, but held a corrupting force upon the user. All the manual fix bottles were used however, meaning they must've also stolen the incomplete plans for full bottles. The only way they would've been able to get new nebula gas is…"

"A lovely little box?" the sudden voice had all weapons drawn, hands held up in surrender even if the person they belonged to held a visage that showed no fear. His rather strange appearance, purple pants with pixel like squares decorating them and a blue shirt under a black jacket, purple ribbons shoved over his shoulder and wires poking out of every pocket, certainly didn't inspire any fear. No, it was the incredibly silent way he had managed to enter an entirely locked room with no open windows, barely a drop of sweat given in effort. "Now, you were the ones who wanted to see me, right? Besides, I have information you want, especially considering thos estrange people floating around Genmeer."

"Wait, you're…!" was all Nepgear was able to get out as the man gave an extravagant bow, the same slightly infuriating smile upon his face as he dusted off his clothes. "So you knew those people were in Genmeer?"

"It's nice to meet you all too. Call me whatever, Game Brother, Mighty brother. My name is Pallad, but people seem so reluctant to use it." Pallad introduced with a cheeky wave, the man casually lounging upon the second sofa as if he hadn't just so happened to intrude in a completely locked room like the walls had been made of water. "They've been quiet so far, they've only been acting out slightly in more recent times. From what I'm aware of, they originally belonged to a group that was dedicated to collecting people to the side of Arfoire, but after retrieving a special little present box, they were able to reach higher levels of power and now they feel as if they can do whatever they want. News about where they've been station has been awkward to come across."

Bauen only listened with half of his mind, for this man in one small moment had already set off a few alarms in his mind/ despite how secret the entire operation had been, here was a person who despite being renowned as a half-hearted worker who only acted occasionally, actually knew about the secret that the research labs had been trying to keep silent all along.

"Oh, they look so surprised!" Pallad remarked with a grin, casually kicking his feet as he threw his arms out. "Don't tell me you haven't told them about Pandora's Box yet? Had they never questioned where your power came from?"

There were the expectant eyes, the ones that Bauen had been expecting as soon as the news of the box had been revealed. With a deep breath, there was nothing the man could do but start speaking, regret colouring his every words as his eyes lost their usual splendour.

"It was during an expedition. Usually, they consist of a combination of Guild agents and scientists, to prevent any monsters from causing further harm and to investigate anything that is found immediately respectively. Due to the elimination of all monsters within the recent vicinity, it was agreed that the scientific division could separate in order to cover a larger area. That was when we found the Pandora's box hidden beneath everything else…"

* * *

 _At first, Bauen had been quite excited to join the exhibition; all he had been doing so far was menial tasks and while they were fun for keeping his brain occupied, they weren't exactly creating anything new or interesting. Searching a recently discovered ruin in an attempt to find technologies and details that had been lost to time? That beat maintaining dying machinery any day._

 _The entire crew had been quite friendly as well, the trip full of laughter and joviality even as they were forced to run in order to allow the Guild agents to do their jobs and kill any monsters to be found. It was only when they finally had the reassurances that he could split when Bauen began to feel his own nerves act against him. The most he had done before this point had simply been retrieving machinery from abandoned buildings that were lost to monsters. Who knew what sort of secrets could be hidden in a place like this?_

 _The walls were adorned with some sort of strange language, one that the brunette had ever seen in any other place in Planeptune or elsewhere. He wasn't a language expert, that would have to be left to someone else back at the labs as the man snapped a few pictures of the scene. The further the man moved, the more solemn the story that was being portrayed became; what was once shown in the pictures to be a prosperous society was soon crudely drawn in flames, a single odd figure in red and gold standing above broken buildings and red stained warriors._

 _When one truly thought about it, the entire scenario depicted here made sense. There were numerous ruins dotted around all of the landmasses save Genmeer considering its relatively new status and yet there was no reason for many of them to exist really. If there had been a civilisation that had existed before their own, then the numerous remnants and the fact that there was technology to recover in the first place all seemed reasonable. Bauen wasn't there to enjoy the art though – he had something to search for._

 _The scanners had claimed there was something just a little bit deeper, meaning he had to force himself through near breaking doors and several thankfully big gaps in order to reach what appeared to be a dead end, the man giving a click of his tongue as he viewed the barrier before him._

" _A puzzle is it? how cliché."_

 _ **If you wish to earn what is held inside, there is but one lone key to find. If you like pretty gems that sparkle and shine, then I invite you to search around this mine.**_

 _ **My first is purple, fit for a queen. Second used by hedgehogs, holding chaos unseen. My third is red, July's birthstone as well, while the fourth sits in strings and is found in a shell. Fifth is pure carbon, expensive to buy, while sixth is all striped like a big cat's eye. Seventh is two words, a man made fake of April's stone, while eighth is found just in Leanbox alone.**_

 _ **Now take from each gem one letter in its turn, and you will find the stuff for which even gods yearn.**_

" _Now what on earth can that mean?" the brunette murmured, his smile growing as he took in his surroundings. There were several strange items gathered around the jewel studded chamber, a special spell apparently cast upon them to prevent people from simply sticking their hands in any of the containers without having answered the puzzle (Bauen had been rather sly when it came to puzzles like that, so it was reasonable for them to prevent others from using such tricks.) "Right, let's take this piece at a time…"_

 _Well, the jewel that is most associated with purple is the amethyst, so that wasn't too difficult to find out. The same with the second jewel of the puzzle; there was a famous game which prominently featured emeralds that would fit such a description (though it did seem rather odd, in hindsight. How on earth did they know about such a game? Was… was it based on truth?)July's birthstone… that was ruby, and in a shell? Pearl, it had to be. Discovering all the different ways people chose to incorporate protections and safety features, it was an absolutely fascinating thing to experience!_

 _Fifth? That was diamond, basic chemistry. The sixth was a bit more a challenge however, for he had never heard of such a thing… no wait, there was something that Ko was talking about! That was tiger's eye and April's stone was diamond. Would they use diamond twice? No, the puzzle called it man made, fake diamond was a thing –cubic zirconium. Thankfully, the last part was relatively simple for indeed, Leanbox was known for specialising in black opals. That was fairly easy, but it didn't give Bauen his answer yet._

" _Take from each gem one letter in its turn and you will find the stuff for which even gods yearn." Bauen repeated, running his fingers across the engravings. "Taking their initials doesn't create anything particularly, and I don't think it's an anagram. No, wait…! 'In its turn!' not initials, but…"_

 _ **A**_ _methyst_

 _E_ _ **m**_ _erald_

 _Ru_ _ **b**_ _y_

 _Pea_ _ **r**_ _l_

 _Diam_ _ **o**_ _nd_

 _Tiger'_ _ **s**_ _Eye_

 _Cubic Z_ _ **i**_ _rconium_

 _Black Op_ _ **a**_ _l_

" _ **A, M, B, R, O, S, I A: Ambrosia!**_ _I just need to find whatever's called ambrosia!" the scientist declared, feverish dashing about in a mad attempt to find this so called item of the gods. All of the bottles and miscellaneous containers had been labelled, but none of them seemed even close to what Bauen desired until eventually, the whole room appeared to be proving fruitless. Not a single container looked to be what he desired, Bauen's eyes scanning over the elaborate chamber. He would have to bring the others in and see if they could find anything, and after he managed to get so far by himself! The image on the doorway with the puzzle was almost mocking… wait a minute…_

 _The image depicted the same figure in red and gold armour, almost monstrous as it covered the entirety of the gateway with the puzzle engraved onto his chest piece. That wasn't the part that intrigued him however, it was the odd lock that sat in the middle acting as the only thing that stopped intruders from barging in. with closer inspection, Bauen was quick to notice the slight grooves that allowed his fingers to dig in slightly around the edges, the entire pot shaped item coming off with what seemed to be all of Bauen's strength. Of course, there was a single lock still remaining within the door, but the pot shape split in two, a beautiful key sitting within the snug space._

" _So this is meant to be a representation of ambrosia? Does that mean the armoured figure is a god, an ancient CPU?" Bauen muttered as he inserted the key, a firm twist having the doors swing open to a blinding light, after a brief moment spent with Bauen trying to regain vision, he was finally able to fully recognise the beauty of the final chamber, an odd box like object sat upon an elegant podium like a trophy. Compared to the opulence of its surroundings, it was actually quite simple, a box of red, blue, green and grey that looked as if it had been made out of pieces of a model kit in all honesty. No time could be wasted in calling in the rest of his team, all there marvelling at his discovery. It was entirely a success for the group._

 _Until Bauen actually laid a hand upon it._

 _A sudden blast had the group slamming against the chamber's walls, Bauen one of the last to regain his bearings as he picked himself up with a less than stellar groan. It wouldn't be known to Bauen until he finally returned back to the Planeptune Labs, but the blast had proven so strong that it had left traces of its power across Gamindustri, even where its light failed to reach. So far, it hadn't appeared that anyone was majorly injured and the walls around them hadn't been damaged at all, but the box itself… several of the outside panels had fallen flat to ground, revealing the strange slots within and leaving the box entirely grey. The scientist was quick to stumble forth and gather them together, leaving his superior to grab the box with a scowl after a small moment's inspection._

" _Well, looks like this stupid trip did result in something after all…" the expedition leader muttered, hefting the box into a bag before sending it off into his inventory. It clearly was a dangerous object; who knew what it could do to the rest of his equipment if it was left unsealed? "Come on then you lot, stop being whimps! We need to get back home and make sure we get a bonus for this."_

 _Bauen followed behind dutifully, but to be honest, he was slightly lost in thought. Sure, the leader had always been a rather gruff man, but the rough exterior usually held only for the beginning of an expedition and when they were back at the Guild – he had a reputation to keep before his superiors yet otherwise, he was usually quite jovial. To see him so rough even after taking a hit like that… perhaps the rest of the ruins was just as odd as the chamber he had been sent to deal with. Bauen may have been more inclined towards tricks and puzzles, but their leader was a warrior through and through; he would rather face the horde than any sort of riddle or question._

 _It wasn't just the leader who was a bit disgruntled after that attack however, for the entire group seemed far more morose than usual. The brunette thought they were meant to be laughing their way back home, triumphant about their discovery, yet here they all were tired, exhausted and lugging back something that could potentially cause a lot of damage. It was probably karma for his enthusiasm and naivety, these sorts of things never went off without a hitch in real life after all. At least the difficult part was done for now though. All it would take was a little authorisation from the Guild Captain and then he would be able to analyse the box with as many toys as he needed._

 _Yes, he would be surprised by what he would find._

* * *

 **And that's where we'll pause for now! Of course, planting a whole lot of seeds for explaining things later down the line. There wasn't going to be anyone else for the CPU Candidate of Genmeer other than Pallad. Poppy might've worked and I did originally think of using her, but I've kind of used a different idol to replace her. Sorry about that!**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	8. 8 - the villain trap

**Hello everybody! Time for more fighting, quite a bit of fighting actually. I don't think I've paced this out correctly, this might end up being a fight filled chapter followed by an interaction heavy one. One of the weirdest things I have to do with this story is try and figure out what bottles I want and don't want from the main and hopefully, this is a nice mix of actual bottles and my own. Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: Those chains, they're otherworldly. Tell me Abrienne, just what are they?_

 _Abrienne: So, you're a kamen rider? That sounds so cool! try and rescue the Mascot, but where is it?_

 _Bauen: The ability to capture your enemies and use them against each other is truly scary. You will make a fierce fighter._

 _Abrinne: I don't want to fight, i just want to be left alone... but if the power of my heart can help, I'll do what i can!_

 _B + A: Rider once more! Will you be mine?_

* * *

"The box was lost when our little friend here went just a little bit mad. All that research and power, helping people cause more chaos than ever before…" Pallad sighed before all pretenses of sadness left his body and he leapt to his feet. "Still, that doesn't mean we're sitting idle! Sure, I've had to push off quite a few official meetings and the like, but I still managed to get some work done and I think I've managed to stem their influence."

"I'm guessing that is why you have managed to gain a reputation for being rather flighty and fleeing work?" Bauen assumed with a hand to his chin, the answer being a cheeky smile in return. "Well, it's good to know that the CPU Candidate is actually doing something. We came here with a purpose however."

"Yes! Do you know the location of Genmeer's Mascot?" Nepgear enquired, hands held close to her chest. "We're hoping that by lending its power, we can save the CPUs from the Gamindustri Graveyard!"

"That does sound reasonable… if only I had a proper idea of where the Mascot was." Pallad dramatically sighed with a hand to his forehead, the man immediately letting his rather irksome smile return to his face but moments later. "If I were to give it a guess however, I would say somewhere around the Gekitotsu Gardens. Very few actually go there now thanks to all of the monsters that have gathered, but it was a place where many would go to empty their mind and focus themselves; a perfect place for a Mascot to manage the wellbeing of the people."

Well the suggestion was reasonable and with a shared nod, the group prepared to move, though just as Bauen was about to follow the eagerly chatting trio out of the door, a hand upon his shoulder caused him to turn to where Pallad was holding a hand out – he was clearly not expecting a handshake and in a few moments, Bauen was preparing the bottle.

"Sure, you told them how you actually managed to get the Pandora's Box, but you never did tell them about the side effects, did you?" the CPU Candidate of Genmeer remarked, Bauen letting a sharp scoff escape him.

"Let them learn gradually. Bombarding them with too much will simply leave them more confused than educated." The older rider answered, a second bottle surprisingly needed for Pallad much to Bauen's surprise. "They're all smart girls. Give them enough time and I highly doubt that they won't figure it out by themselves."

"That's your decision then? I'll be interested to see how this special game plays out. It's always interesting, isn't it? A villain playing the role of the hero."

Bauen didn't honour Pallad with a second reply.

* * *

As soon as they entered the odd mix of a beautiful garden and junkyard that was known as the Gekitotsu Garden, the group were met by a rather impressive gathering of creatures all emitting the same black particles as the monsters they had witnessed back when Nepgear first transformed. Of course, it didn't take much to prompt Nepgear to change into her HDD form, Compa and IF pulling out their needle and qatars respectively as Bauen threw a pair of bottles in the air with a grin.

"Looks like we've got some guys to welcome us to the Landmass, huh?" IF remarked. It didn't look as if any of them were particularly dangerous at a single glance, but with that strange energy emanating off their bodies, who knew how strong they were? "Maybe we could get paid for a mission if we can make it safe for the people to come back here."

"Some of this machinery does look pretty interesting… once this is all done, maybe we should come back here and do a little proper exploring!" Purple Sister added, a glint entering her eyes as they remained glued to some sort of odd discarded contraption.

"Um, maybe we should deal with the baddies first…" Compa reminded, the nurse in training hefting up her needle. Surprisingly, some monsters actually recoiled at the sight; normally, the monsters would proceed forward regardless to what they were facing, but there was a certain reputation to needles that had even the emotionless scared for their lives.

"There's been a combination I've been wanting to try for a bit now. Let's see just how powerful it can be." Bauen concluded, several different equations passing before his eyes as pink and black were shaken as hard as possible, the sound of the caps falling into place bringing a smirk to his face. "Now, shall we begin the experiment?"

 _ **HUNTER!**_

 _ **GEAR!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

Black Sister had given up a part of her to form the crosshairs carved hunter bottle while Purple Sister had used her energy to form the cog shaped gear bottle. Put together as Bauen began to crank the handle, the pair formed pipes of lilack and black liquid wrapping around the quickly formed frames, both IF and Compa having to step aside as the tubes solidified into two halves of armour.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **DANGAN NO INVENTOR! GEAR-HUNTER! YEAH!**_

The purple half had a cog for an eye as expected, another one forming the shoulder while the teeth ran down the length of the arms. The back of his boot too shared a gear coming out of it and for a brief moment, it was as if every gear upon his body spun wildly, clockwork forming upon the chest plate. In contrast, the black half had a crosshair for the eye, a forearm mounted gun shining in the sunlight as the chest plate pattern took on the look of a gun grip. A held out hand was soon filled with a black and purple bodied pistol, a slim slit sitting on top.

 _ **TECH SHOOTER!**_

"The laws of victory… have been decided!" There was no hesitation as four of the monsters were shot with the pistol and unlike last time, even single one of them dissipated within a few moments. It wasn't as if they were any weaker than before; Compa's needle still required time in order to melt away her foes and the regular bullets were almost being absorbed to IF's displeasure. The rider spun around, a whole circle of lasers flying outward to carve through those that wished to attack and with Nepgear flying about, the horde was being culled somewhat. Unfortunately, even that was only having so much of an effect.

"Ah, there are so many of them!" Compa cried out, one particularly nasty squat armoured monster trying its best to slash away at her. With a push of the button at the side of his pistol, Bauen was quick to dart over to the nurse in training as a beam formed a katana above the slide of the gun, a few slashes and a good old kick sending the monster into its friends, though they simply proceeded to charge through the dissipating pixels to continue their assault. "What are we going to do?"

"When Pallad said that there had been a monster infection, I had never expected it to be this bad." Bauen muttered, the lilac and black rider letting loose a sharp whistle that cut through the cries that filled the air. That whistling noise was soon replaced by frantic samba however as the cross dragon launched into action, flames cutting down those who were approaching behind IF. With the slightly reduced numbers, it was far easier for the Guild agent to hack away at the beats that threatened her, a foot slamming down on one having it still enough to stab straight through. Combined with Bauen's unbeatable strikes with bullet and blade along with Purple Sister cutting down the place, it wouldn't take long before it was all shaved down to a much more manageable, if still great, size. "Let's see whether we can finish this easily."

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

A veritable dance of slices had Nepgear slicing through the group without hesitation, flame and lightning surround IF as she held nothing back. Adding to the mess was a torrent of strange fluids from Compa that paralysed, poisoned and burnt while Bauen let wings of energy form behind his back lift him up. A crosshair formed beneath his feet, several seconds spent aiming him towards the most appropriate position before with a fierce bang, the rider was sent slamming down with an explosion that revealed the dissipating remains of the horde. One bottle wasn't enough to capture their essence, several falling being held in the man's hands.

"With so many bottles, I fear that I may never use them all." Chuckled Bauen, though rapid figure pushing past him had those bottles out of his hands in no time and instead into the grasp of a chuckling woman. She appeared no different to your average citizen, clad in jeans and a navy jacket over a white shirt, but the smirk upon the blonde's face was more than enough to make her unsettling. "What the-!? What on earth are you doing!?"

"Maybe it was a little unfair to do that without introducing myself first, but I couldn't exactly wait for you to put them away into your inventory, could I?" the woman replied, casually clutching the bulging bottles. One in particular seemed to catch her eye despite the lack of difference from any other, but it was what came next that truly made the group look twice. A single grip of her fist had the bottle returned not just to a normal size, but even take on a completely different form, the white image of a ghost appearing upon it. "Don't you just love the mystery of finding out what your present is? A treasure like this would surely be better off in the hands of someone who could actually use its power properly, right?"

"Don't mess around with those, they can be incredibly dangerous!" Bauen warned, stepping forward until a bullet sparking against his armour had the man pause, looking towards the pistol in her hand. "No, that can't be…!"

"That girl's got one of those transteam gun thingies!" Compa gasped out as the girl slid each non purified fullbottle into her own inventory, the odd fullbottle displaying the moon in silver sliding into the slot upon the transteam gun.

 _ **Night…!**_

"Mistify."

 _ **Mist Match…!**_

 _ **Night…! N-Night…! Night…! Fire!**_

And as blue and yellow fireworks burst through the cloud of steam that had surrounded the blonde woman, Star Blazing was standing haughtily before them. The night fullbottle was quickly slid out of the gun to be replaced with the ghostly bottle, ethereal energy gathering at the barrel as it was pointed in their direction.

 _ **Fullbottle…!**_

 _ **Steam attack…!**_

Several ghosts began swirling around the group, none of them able to stop the spectral attack as the spirits slammed into them and exploded. With the group down on the floor, they were drawn to the synthetic laughter, Star Blazing slowly stepping towards with what was clearly a condescending look upon her face even if it wasn't being shown.

"See what I mean? You had years to mull over your research and become great, yet this is the extent of what you're able to accomplish? How pitiful." Star Blazing mocked, putting her foot onto Bauen's head as the rider weakly clawed at it. "Well, there was something you could use… but that ended as well as you can expect, didn't it? To think, the only things you can create are tools of death."

Nepgear wasn't exactly sure what was being insinuated by that statement, but the sheer fury that was being demonstrated by Bauen was enough to tell that it wasn't exactly a fond memory. With a fierce roar of anger, the man clamoured to his feet, the energy blade slashing furiously even if Star Blazing was able to dodge around each and every one as if it was nothing.

"Take those words back!" the rider growled, but the only answer he would receive was a small tut and a boot to the stomach. It wasn't as if that was truly enough to make him give pause, but it was simply a case of running to get smashed back again until Nepgear and IF were struggling to hold him back. "My tools are _not_ meant for death!"

"Well, perhaps if you keep telling yourself that it may actually come true." Star Blazing taunted, a slow wave having the woman disappear with but a few final words. "Thanks for the bottles! I'll be returning those to where they came from now!"

"Where they came from?" IF repeated, turning to where Nepgear was letting her transformation fade away, Bauen clenching his fist with strength that would probably crush bones. "What on earth does that mean?"

"Whatever it is, it's clearly not something we should be eagerly awaiting." Bauen muttered, stomping forward with a dark glint to his eye. "We should probably continue moving. We need to see if the Mascot will lend their power as soon as possible." But the man didn't even wait for an answer as he removed his own transformation, running ahead without a moment's thought for the others to catch up.

"That statement must've really hit hard for Bauen." Nepgear remarked quietly as they tried to keep behind the man's movements. Though he had let the transformation fade away, he still held the beam sword tightly in hand, any monster that was unfortunate enough to find itself within his range not even having a moment to think before they lost their lives. "I don't think I've ever seen him this angry."

"Well, no one likes being told that all their stuff can do is kill people." IF reasoned as she folded her arms. "We can't let him carry on like this though. Knowing us, something bad'll happen and if we have Bauen like this added in, who knows what kind of mess we'll end up in?"

It wasn't as if it was just the wording that had him upset; any person who made something that could be construed as a weapon would face similar criticisms. No, it was the memories that came up with such a statement, the rider lifting his hands up to see the horrific amounts of blood that still stained him to this day. His footsteps trailed and he paused in place, mind flashing to back then…

" _Well, looks like this is the end for me…"_

" _Mission… Accomplished…"_

No, this was not the time for moping. They had a job to do and maybe a bit more fighting could clear his head out a bit; the other attempts to speak with the Mascot had all ended in combat of sorts, there was no reason why this wouldn't be the same.

The drillcrusher smashed its way through the scrap metal that blocked their path, what had once been an opulent room now sitting in disrepair after having been abandoned to the monsters. At first, they were ready to disregard the room once more, but a sudden crash at the doorway had them all turning to the now solid barrier of steel keeping them within the tight area.

"Damn it, the outside roof is down!" Bauen scowled, eyes glancing over what he would have to deal with. No windows they could crawl out of and he mostly used the Machine Builder for its bike capabilities and easy size; he had yet to actually save any numbers onto it that could help. A quick pull of the trigger proved it too strong for the drillcrusher to break through, meaning that for the moment, they were helpless.

"This is the same sort of stuff they used with the Basilicom, it's not going to be broken through any time soon." IF added, running a hand down the sheet of metal. The supports probably got weaker with time and our disturbance managed to break them entirely.

"Truly a shame. Looks like that means you're all sitting ducks!"

"Terror Burst!" Nepgear cried out, leaping back to the wall when the armoured man appeared out of nowhere with smoke emanating off him. "So you were here with Star Blazing as well!"

"Of course, of course! Wouldn't do not to play my part in this fancy little show of yours, would it?" the black figure remarked, leaning against the wall with a cocky gait. "After all, Star blazing managed to get some bottles off you and pull of the diversion we needed; to do anything less would mean she wouldn't stop speaking about it for days!"

"Diversion?" Compa repeated, the pink haired girl's words perfect timing with the second burst of smoke that filled the room and revealed Star Blazing herself, clutching a rather familiar disk in her hands. "Wait, that's the Mascot!"

"Unhand me! You don't know what you're messing with!" the Mascot cursed, but there was little it could, Nepgear could feel it already; they had that same divine power suppressor that they had used upon her before.

"Loathe as I am to admit it, we needed the time. Let's just say this little thing can be quite stubborn when it wants to be." Star Blazing muttered, the blue clad figure twisting and turning the disk as if it was no more than an actual CD. "But now that we have our prize, we can deal with you right here right now, no distractions!"

 _ **HUNTER!**_

 _ **GEAR!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **DANGAN NO INVENTOR! GEAR-HUNTER! YEAH!**_

The lilac and black rider shot forward, Compa rushing to join him from a small distance behind as they approached Star Blazing. Ducking around a steam based bullet, Kamen Rider Build responded with shots of his own, Star Blazing looking to the sparking armour with a slight sense of delight.

"Truly, those bottles are more powerful than we give credit for." The blue clad warrior remarked, a quick drawn blade locking with Bauen's own and pushing him in Compa's direction. A quick roll had the nurse in training stumbling, but her wild confusion still managed to have her land some of the acid upon Star Blazing's back. The sound of fizzing distracted the woman just enough to allow Bauen to knock the steam blade aside, a firm kick having Star Blazing falling upon her back, bullets ending the woman sliding until she hit the wall.

"Oh no, you're fight's with me little missy!"

 _ **RIFLE MODE!**_

 _ **ELEC-STEAM!**_

Splitting his blade in half and sticking the sharp half upon the front of his pistol while the handle went upon the back like a stock, Terror Burst was quick to defend his fallen ally with a giant cloud of smoke, barely a touch needed to send a grand amount of current through Nepgear's body. A hand casually held out was taken reluctantly by Star Blazing, the blue clad warrior flipping her own steam blade in hand.

"I suppose you want me to thank you for saving my life?" Star Blazing mockingly asked as she pushed back Bauen, said rider trying his best to keep his position as the two edges of energy and metal ground together, Compa dancing around the shots from the Transteam gun held in the other hand. Meanwhile, it was left to Terror Burst to keep IF and Nepgear busy, their advanced experience in combat compared to the pink haired girl requiring a little more attention.

"Not at all! I'll just say it was implied." The man muttered in response, spinning around the Qatar that wanted to take off his head before he slipped a second bottle of yellow into his gun's slot. "Well, maybe I _will_ take the chance to spice up my arsenal. How do you like this?"

 _ **KUMA!**_

 _ **FULLBOTTLE!**_

 _ **STEAM ATTACK!**_

A giant bear of yellow energy tackled IF mid-flight, the brunette unable to do much in order to dodge as she was sent crashing against the wall. Nepgear let out a cry as she leapt back, a small attempt to transform bringing a sharp pain to her heart that prevented her from transforming.

"Oh come on, you really thought it would work this time? We would put you in a trap and have access to a share limiter and you thought we wouldn't use it?" Terror Burst mocked, watching as Bauen slipped aside to let a shot of strange fluid splash against Star Blazing's stomach before the rider was taking a foot to the stomach. "With those bottles, he's managed to raise up his hazard level… but you're still unused to the system. Without your divine powers, you can only do so much."

As the man in black steadily walked towards the gasping CPU Candidate, he wasn't able to see Bauen's collapsed form shaking a bottle desperately in his hands, pointing the cap towards Terror Burst's back as he clicked it into place.

 _ **DREAM!**_

"Argh!" as the white liquid sprayed upon the man, his head suddenly began spinning completely out of control, thousands of Nepgears sitting where he was pretty sure there had been only one. No matter which he tried to strike, it never seemed as if he hit flesh the rider taking a moment to redirect the mad warrior towards the one person he had to avoid; Star Blazing wasn't prepared to be faced with a steam Blade to the side.

"The hell are you doing idiot!?"

The Diamond bottle found itself within Nepgear's hand, IF holding on to a suddenly thrown sword bottle while Doctor was given to Compa, Baune's hands gathering them together for a hushed chatter.

"Shake those bottles close to you and they should give you an advantage within this battle. I have no idea how long the dream essence's influence will remain within Terror Burst, but hopefully it will be enough time to grab a hold of the mascot. Nepgear, get ready to transform when I give you the call." The rider ordered, the purple haired girl going to question before Bauen was already right back in the throes of combat. In all of the chaos, Terror Burst wasn't in any position to notice the disappearance of the Kuma bottle from his gun, a quick toss being all that Nepgear needed to get the point. "Do it!"

"Got it!"

 _ **KUMA!**_

 _ **DIAMOND!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"A best match!? But they shouldn't, I already established Diamon as the best match fo- You know what!? Screw it!" Bauen yelled kicking forth with a grinding gear upon his foot, Star Blazing unable to deal with the assault from both Build and a confused Terror Burst. "Just go for it!"

And indeed, as the girl cranked the handle, no spurs or pipes were formed, lights flashing upon the Build driver as Nepgear stuck her hands to the sky, a determined expression upon her face.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **MAHOU GIRLS!**_

A pink dressed formed just like had before upon Nepgear, but a deep pink ribbon burst upon her chest, the shoulders puffing out more than it had before. As a hair band formed above her, a delightful little pink witch's hat attached to it, Nepgear drew the accessory onto her head which quickly changed from lilac to blonde once more, though darker than her peach form. A side ponytail formed, the rest flowing down to mid-back as delicate gloves of white took place upon the CPU Candidate's hands, golden bands popping to existence just on the edge of them. Dainty shoes of pink appeared upon her feet leading to white socks to her knees, the pink corset tightening with ribbons as a lazy wave of her hand had a tiny belt of gold around her waist holding three beads of red, blue and yellow.

A quick kick had Terror Burst reeling backwards, Star Blazing being made to stumble back as Bauen beat down upon her. Thanks to Compa's liquids and the fierce assault, much of the woman's energy had been sapped from her, making her just as weak as her friend unable to raise his own sword in any sort of non-crazed manner. Together, the team was weakened enough that they were unable to move in such a tight space even as they heard the joint sound of cranking levers, Bauen and Nepgear sharing a look as they nodded in sync.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

"Precure: Diamond Eternal!" as a crosshair appeared upon the pair, a giant gear of purple energy ripped through them, sending them skyward until they slammed into the roof with a crash, though they would not touch the ground. Instead, a giant diamond would encase both steam fighters while a pentagram of white lit up the roof above, the two fighters sent flying in with a cry of agony and a huge explosion. Falling to the ground, there was little they could do.

"Your hazard level rises quickly CPU Candidate. Let's see how far we can push you." Star Blazing muttered with a growl, the Mascot held tauntingly in her hands before a burst of steam meant all that Bauen could grab was thin air.

"A hazard level?" Compa repeated with a cute tilt of her head, Bauen rubbing his own as the other hand pulled out his bottles, Nepgear copying his actions as both let their transformations fade away.

"It's a measurement of how much of the Pandora Box's power you can resist. Even the slightest increase is something that a person should be wary about." The scientist explained, knocking at the metal that blocked their way. "The minimal requirement to use the rider system is 3.0, and the more you use bottles of greater and greater strength, the higher that level becomes. That's why I had you use those bottles even when you weren't actively participating in the fight."

"So you could raise our own hazard levels?" IF answered, looking to the grey sword bottle between her fingers. It didn't look like much, but to think, it was actually changing her internally… it was kind of creepy in all honesty. "So we can use more power?"

"I have plans for you and Compa, but if they fail, the end result could be disastrous." Bauen continued, unwilling to turn to the girls as he faded into silence. It would take Nepgear to actually ask the question they all wanted answering.

"What would happen to us?" Bauen let his head fall, images, terrible images filling his mind as he let out anguished words.

"If it's too low…You could become monsters the moment you took in too much… and we would have to kill you. Right now, IF and Compa have a hazard level of 1.0. If you were to become a monster, we wouldn't be able to restore your human form. You would be killed on the spot."

There was a moment of silence, eyes dropping down to their bottles. As they were now, they seemed so innocent; simply carved out bottles holding some kind of liquid. The idea that the power contained within could actually turn a person into a monster was truly frightening considering their tiny size.

"We were careless you see. One of the other scientists had decided that they would try and force out the power contained within the Pandora's box, so while there was little security personnel, they were lucky enough to break through and gain access to the box. At that time, I had only just begun analysing what was held within, so we never knew what was coming until it was too late…

* * *

 _Bauen dashed back to the laboratory as fast as he could, Kaito and Ko trying their hardest to catch up. As soon as he got the alert, he knew he wouldn't be able to do this himself, meaning a quick detour in order to get some actual fighters on his side. Ko was always next to her work gear and whenever there was a chance to get into a good fight, Kaito was happy to join with his own SMG._

 _The two Guild agents immediately had their firearms forth as they moved through the empty laboratory, the sound of mad laughter providing them a pretty easy guide as Bauen tried his best to get through the various securities that blocked their path. They had never expected anyone but the assigned scientists to get in, so several card scanners, eye scanners and all sorts of gizmos were sorted through before they finally managed to get a glimpse at the intruder._

" _You're too late kid! The box's already mine!" the man cackled, throwing off his lab coat as he grabbed the giant box within his hands. The pedestal had clearly been forced from its hiding place; why would you try your hand at trying to break the defences when you could simply break the wall hiding your treasure? "You think you could hide this away from the rest of us? That we don't deserve to know about this or something?"_

" _That is confidential property! Lower the box now or face an even harsher sentence than you're already getting!" Ko immediately barked out, the redhead raising her pistol to his face. The man merely gave a scoff, one hand coming off the box before Bauen could even hope to react. Down to the holster by his leg, the intruder was fast to draw at the empty air, his own weapon completely non-existent as he… wait, what?_

" _So sorry about that… you wouldn't happen to be looking for this, would you?" a teasing voice questioned, the intruder looking from the empty holster to where Kaito was casually leaning against the wall, another pistol in the red suited boy's hands. "Shame, isn't it? I guess this means it's three against one, and the three of us actually have firearms. Bauen, catch!"_

 _He wasn't the most proficient of people when it came to shooting, but there was a minimal level of competency required in order to gain access to the Planeptune laboratories; he was at least able to take on a proper grip as he aimed the gun towards the disarmed intruder. The lack of fear on his face however was disconcerting to Bauen, the intruder letting off a deep chuckle as he held up a little bottle sized object._

" _I don't need that anymore! Now, I'll have power beyond anything else, I don't need a stupid gun!" the bottle like object was slammed against the panels of the box, a second wave of energy sending Kaito, Ko and Bauen flying back against the walls. Ko was the first one to regain her bearings, her pistol pointed towards where the man was holding the strange bottle skyward, the image of a castle carved in silver proudly on the front, every rim of the bottle taking on an eerie red hue. "This is it, this is where I'll transcend beyond even a CPU! Watch me become more than divine!"_

" _Hold it!" but it was too late, for the man was already injecting it into his body, warping his very DNA. His screams were slowly becoming more and more monstrous, the pain looking absolutely unbearable as he writhed upon the ground, all signs of delusion and grandeur leaving but a monster in its path. A body of red had shields upon the forearms and giant ones upon the shoulders, the various squares of yellow upon the bulky armour giving the impression of a castle, while legs of blue twitched erratically. Bauen slowly shuffled behind Kaito and Ko's protection as the creature slowly raised from its position upon the floor, looking to its warped appearance and letting out a hideous yell of primal fear and anger. "Bauen, stay back! Kaito, let's do this!"_

" _Right!" the red suited boy quickly leapt upwards, a gloved hand taking a hold of the pillar supporting the roof and letting loose with his SMG. The mutated intruder however was barely put off, a raised hand being all that was needed to block the bullets. Anything that Ko shot from the back simply bounced off as if they were nothing more than peas, the two agents looking to the rampaging monster in shock. These were specially designed weapons that were even able to deal with the most armoured of monsters that threatened any of the landmasses – for them not to have an effect was a testament to the strength of the monster._

 _With barely a second thought, the monster smashed up the pillar Kaito was holding on to, the boygrabbing a hold of his top hat as he leapt for his life. There was no grace to the monster's movements, barely more than an animal as it flailed about, a surprisingly swift strike sending Ko back into the box while Bauen's rapid jump had the item safely within his hands before it could touch the floor. Kaito wasn't too soon after tumbling to their position, brushing fof his suit as he jumped to his feet._

" _Something tells me this isn't going to be as easy as we thought it would be." Kaito cursed, cracking his neck slightly as a small smile blossomed upon his face. "Then again, this is the most fun I've had in ages! Come on Ko, on your feet! Don't want to miss out on the fun now, do you?"_

" _Kaito!" the redheaded woman cried out, but it was for nought; the suited boy was already dancing around the castle based monster, several teasing remarks thrown about as if this wasn't even a proper fight. The teasing however did ease up slightly when a single punch from the beast was able to take a fierce chunk of the building's wall away, something heavily reinforced for the sake of the more dangerous experiments. "Can't you have a little more focus at times like this? We don't have anything to fight back with!"_

 _And that was when Bauen remembered. There were plans he had seen, plans to create a new weapon that could potentially use this new power, it had been suggested by one of his colleagues and never finished! If he could just go and do some alterations…_

 _They were exactly where he left them, several pieces still scattered upon the desk as the blueprints appeared with a flash upon the computer screen. There was no time for hesitation, the man eagerly taking each section and fitting them together, grabbing whatever gears, springs or coils he needed as he muttered furiously. "If I remember correctly, there was a slot I could use…"_

" _Hurry up Bauen, your friends are waiting for you! Where was that damn trigger?"_

" _Drill section can come off and become a gun barrel, more useful in the long term, but we'll use it!"_

" _Gauge, have to make sure we can tell when too much power is being pushed through it…"_

" _The artificial power container… well, this could either work amazingly or end up blowing up in my face."_

 _Being tossed about was certainly not a fun experience for Kaito or Ko, the two having their backs to the door as the red monster let out another roar. Their weapons had long since been discarded, merely a slight irritation at best for the beast, meaning they really had no defences save for trying not to get smacked around in the first place._

 _A shot of energy from behind them would have them turn around, the monster attracted to the new victim it could pour its anger into. Just as the intruder did before, Bauen placed the artificial power container to the box, watching it morph into an image of a cobra with the same red rim and silver colouration. No more thought was put in before he aimed the gun towards the monster, the vessel entering the back of the gun as the gauge started spinning wildly, as did the top section._

 _ **FINISH!**_

 _The blast was quick to take on the form of a cobra, the energy born snake slithering through the air before with a massive chop, an explosion engulfed the monster and it was no more. Panting, the man could only look between the weapon and the box, his surprise evident upon his face._

" _A box that can turn people into monsters... This is just like Pandora's box, the box of evils."_

* * *

 **And that's it for now. Hehe, maybe the ending could use a little more finesse. Next time, how on earth will we find the Mascot when it's in the hands of the enemy? just what will they do with the power they now hold? And just how does 5pb and Pallad fit into all of this? Please stay tuned because unlike before, you have no idea what's coming next!**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	9. 9 - the Genmeer guardians

**Welcome back guys; let's wrap things up in Genmeer shall we? I've introduced a couple of things into this that should shake things up in later chapters, so please look forward to that! Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: A princess and a knight, a best match! Beware the forest however, for you're not the only ones there..._

 _Zelda: The land of Midnight Majesty, how quaint! Of course, things are about to get a lot more violent._

 _Bauen: I'll have to pull out all the stops this time! Now, to work!_

 _Zelda: This is the moment where our teamwork shines through!_

 _B + Z: Rider once more! The hero has come!_

* * *

Bauen sat in the Genmeer Basilicom, muttering to himself as he typed with a furious vigour unmatched by any other. The rest were left to simply watch the man as he worked, Pallad playing upon his little games console as Compa spoke up.

What is he working on this time?" the nurse in training questioned, a glint of worry entering her eyes as she watched the older man pause only briefly to take a sip of the water precariously positioned upon an incredibly filled desk, the printer's whirring only foretelling a greater weight for the woo to handle. "He hasn't stopped since we came back from the Gekitotsu Garden."

"This is really the first time we've managed to lose a Mascot. I suppose that's spurred him to try and improve." IF commented from her tired position upon the couch, the sound of yet another phone ringing far more grating upon the agent's ears than usual. "Looks like we've got another wreckage, this is ridiculous! How can they be attacking so many places at once!?"

At first, it had been a simple investigation – the Guild had sent news of a random area in Genmeer being attacked, a local companies tech barely left as anything more than scrap. They had been halfway through investigating that when all of a sudden, another message had been sent detailing another location. It had gotten to such an extent that Genmeer had to be thrown into a state of emergency; people weren't allowed to leave their homes save for the Guild agents and they had been spread thin between investigations and trying to protect areas.

"ASIC's influence is everywhere. I guess they're just tapping into that to do way more than they could alone." Nepgear concluded, the girl poking her fingers as she looked down. A sigh escaped Pallad as he finally hit pause upon his game, swinging his feet over his chair so he could stand properly.

"Well, moping around here isn't going to help us now, is it?" the CPU Candidate of Genmeer remarked, his voice surprisingly cheerful considering that there were continuous attacks upon his own Landmass. "How about we actually do something about this little mess?"

"We're already doing all we can, we haven't managed to find a single pattern or predictable location for them to strike, it's almost as if they know exactly where we're protecting – we can't intervene if we don't know where they're going to attack." IF countered, the brunette running a hand through her hair in frustration. She was answered by a short chuckle, the man waving his finger before her.

"It's pretty clear that this is all just a way of luring us out, so why don't we turn their attack against them?" Pallad suggested, pointing towards where Bauen finally let out a sigh, letting himself fall back into the cushions of the sofa. "That's what Bauen has been working on, right?"

"A way to improve upon the fullbottle system that allows a greater access to the innate power of the Pandora box. The schematics are complete, we merely need to find essences that work with the system without overloading it." The elderly man declared, jumping to his feet. "I shall get to work on a prototype and then we'll be in a position where we can begin testing essences."

"Wait, you need to test it? But they're already out there wrecking the whole place up!" Nepgear cried, another beep from IF's phones only emphasising her point. A knock on the door at the moment led to Compa pulling it open, a rather energetic young girl bursting through with a kick that nearly took off the pink haired girl's head. Clad in a biker's outfit and with a bright scarf of red around her neck, the girl let out a bright smile regardless of the damage she almost caused.

"Oracle Toei is back in the house! I came back as soon as you said we had visitors Pallad." The now declared Oracle explained, gesturing behind her. "I brought along the help that you wanted, so you better make this good; we need as many hands out on the field as we can get and you're taking one of our best away."

Following behind the black clad Oracle, 5pb carefully walked into the room, the idol letting a small smile show as she looked towards the gathered group.

"Um, hello. I was told I was called for?" the girl added, Pallad letting a cheerful grin appear on his face as he clapped his hands.

"Perfect. Now that we're here, we can get this plan started. You'll all stay here and finish off whatever gadget Bauen's fixing up while 5pb and I deal with our little troublemakers and get them in one spot." The Genmeer CPU Candidate explained, Nepgear tilting her head in confusion.

"I haven't actually seen you fight before. What kind of weapon do you use?" the technophile questioned, the man merely giving a smile as he placed his hand behind his back.

"Genmeer's CPU Game Heart is known for its very orthodox ruler compared to everywhere else. Can't you guess?"

 _ **PERFECT PUZZLE!**_

 _ **WHAT'S THE NEXT STAGE?**_

 _ **WHAT'S THE NEXT STAGE?**_

"Henshin." In the room, a giant screen appeared holding the image of a puzzle game behind Pallad, a single button press as a wave of blue briefly pixelated everything being all that was needed to send out a small hologram. The image fell upon the man, replicated what was shown upon the hologram; a black and white body suit leading to a golden chest pkate and boots, an arc upon the front of the chest showing multiple puzzle pieces. His gloves were blue, as were the giant chunky shoulder pads and helmet styled after an owl.

 _ **DUAL UP!**_

 _ **GET THE GLORY IN THE CHAIN! PERFECT PUZZLE!**_

"Kamen Rider Para-DX, lvl 50 in the flesh!" the Kamen Rider introduced himself with a bow, looking to the stunned faces of the girls with a hidden grin. It was just a shame that Bauen didn't show the same surprise, though his reasoning was clear.

"If Game Heart uses that technology, then it would make sense for his CPU Candidate to do so as well, wouldn't it?"

"Well that takes some of the fun out of my show." Para-DX sighed, turning around lazily as he grabbed a hold of 5pb's arm, the blue haired songstress giving a small jump at the touch while the rider gave a lazy wave. "Anyway, we'll keep them occupied, so you better not take too long to test this stuff out. See you!"

With a flash of red and blue pixels, it was as if the two didn't exist anymore in the room, not a single clue left that they were there save for the small yelp of surprise that the idol gave. That left Toei and the rest of the group, Bauen approaching from the closet and dumping an absolute mess of machinery and gears upon the table. The look upon his face was grim and yet there was still a hint of excitement that brought a slight chill to IF's back and a light to Nepgear's eye.

"Okay then, seeing as we really don't have the time to delay, let's get to creating!"

* * *

Both Para-DX and 5pb appeared near the city centre, what was normally a buzzing area of commerce and enjoyment now reduced to rubble as explosions sounded off in the distance. One not so far in the distance had Pallad leaping in front of the idol, a boulder shattering as it met his fist to the sound of clapping.

"I mean, you're not the ones we were expecting, but hey – it's good to see you getting out of the house now and again."

"Star Blazing…" the woman strode forward from the wreckage of a simple local restaurant, a yawn escaping her as she vaguely gestured to the robots by her side. Humanoid in shape, the majority held bladed rifles in their hands save for the few that held grenade launchers, each one primed and ready to fire as soon as their sensors detected the threat to their cause.

"Sorry if I'm not all here at the moment. I never realised it could be so boring when you're not the one smashing places up." The armoured woman responded. "Oh, do you like them? You see, ASIC just so happens to have some wonderful engineers, they lent their prototype Guardian models. Needless to say, they're quite efficient, don't you think?"

"I won't let you keep hurting Genmeer anymore!" 5pb called out, though her confidence was curbed slightly as the robots trained their weapons upon her form. A giggle escaped Star Blazing, the blue fighter pulling out her steam blade and tossing it casually in her hand. "I-I mean it! If Game Heart isn't here to defend this place, then… then I'll be the hero it needs!"

 _ **DOREMIFA DJ!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON, LET'S JAM!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON LET'S JAM!**_

"Fiftieth stage!"

 _ **DUAL UP!**_

 _ **HEY-HEY-HEY! DOREMIFA DJ!**_

"Oi, Kamen Rider Tune. You take on the guardians while I deal with Star Blazing." Para-DX ordered, the puzzle gamer not even pausing before he was rushing forward. Some of the robots tried to attack the CPU Candidate as he dashed, only to find a series of explosive notes bringing a swift end to their attempts, tracing back to 5pb's golden boom-boxes with sliver of smoke emanating off them.

"If you want a fight, then it's going to be with me!" she cried out, a hand held out to grab a hold of the white microphone that formed from the portrait spinning around her, the three prongs on the bottom that usually acted as the feet spinning around the base until a triple layered scythe blade slashed through the metal of one particularly unfortunate robot. All it required was a single push of the yellow A button upon the microphone stand's body.

 _ **KOTOOO!**_

A spinning slash managed to sever the heads of two more, electricity leaking out of their destroyed chassis. The main body of the microphone was put into the path of a few of their blades, what would normally be quite the unwieldy choice of weapons proving its deadliness as the blades separated back into feet with a push of the pink B button, the stand allowing Kamen rider Tune to plant the weapon into the ground.

 _ **PATAAA!**_

"Are you ready to rock!?" the scream was only amplified by the microphone, the boom-boxes upon her shoulders quite literally trembling as they sent forth sound waves that absolutely shattered the incoming Guardians. Deep breaths left the girl, 5pb turning to where the fight between Para-DX and Star Blazing was only to be hit in the chest with a pair of bayonets, the two new guardians letting loose as reinforcements filled up for the lost ranks. "Aw, come on!"

"My heart's dancing right now!" surrounded by various medals depicting all sorts of scenarios, Pallad shot forward with a punch, Star Blazing cringing back with that one strike alone, a sight which made Pallad smile. "Your strength against me was when I couldn't find you. Now that you've unveiled yourself, you're nothing against my strength!"

 _ **MUSCLE KA!**_

 _ **MUSCLE KA!**_

 _ **MUSCLE KA!**_

A trio of red medals shot into the rider's body with a wave of his hand a small scoff escaping him as he barely gave the woman a flick. That flick under the influence of the power ups however was more than enough to send her flying, her grunts audible as she slammed into another shopfront. Well, he was paying to have them all reconstructed anyway, what was a little more damage on top of that? Sparks flew and coursed across her body, the woman looking to her form in surprise before she let loose with steam, the smoke causing her to disappear as Para-DX grew defensive.

"So, the power of the lvl 50 gamer is exactly what we expected it to be." Star Blazing sighed, her tired voice giving way to a serious tone. "After all, using our data on an inexperienced fighter using the same system was never going to be an accurate depiction of your strength."

Another burst of smoke had Star Blazing appear just behind Pallad, shooting at his back only to be met by no reaction, the same with the steam blade, each hit blocked by a single movement of his arms to stop the weapons before he back flipped away from the attacker.

"What can I say, I like to keep things lively!" Para-DX joked, leaping into the air as he pulled the blue dual gashat from the side holder, rapidly twisting the golden knob back and forth before plunging it back in.

 _ **GASHUUN!**_

 _ **KIMEWAZA!**_

 _ **DUAL GASHAT!**_

 _ **PERFECT CRITICAL COMBO!**_

Coursing blue energy surrounded Para-DX's foot as he launched forward in mid-air, following after Star Blazing as the blue clad fighter jumped away from her position. It would've been a simple enough attack, he still held a slight control over his movement, but it wasn't enough to make him fully move out of the way of the sights upon a combined Steam Blade and Transteam gun.

 _ **Elec-steam…!**_

 _ **Fullbottle…!**_

 _ **Steam attack…!**_

Pallad was expecting a bit more at first. After all, he felt nothing from the strike and he continued to shoot forward. A second later however, the energy gathered at his foot petered away, his armour dissolving from that point until he was left simply flying forth in his usual clothes. With a harsh thump, Pallad landed on the ground straight on his back, rolling around to push himself up only to pause at the sight that greeted him.

There, shattered on the ground before him, was the gashat gear dual, though if it weren't for the colours on the ground, he wouldn't be so sure it was considering how it was utterly unrecognisable. Pallad had no words for the sight, but the people he was facing off against certainly did.

 _ **Fear…!**_

"Mistify."

 _ **Mist match…!**_

 _ **Fear…! F-fear…! Fear…! Fire!**_

"Why is it that heroes always feel as if there tools are invincible? After all, it's simply machinery. Just like everything else and I you take a look around, you can easily see that stuff isn't too durable when facing us." Terror Burst calmly strolled out onto the street from his sniping position, steam still coming off his armour as he brushed himself off. "To be honest, I'm surprised no one's tried this sort of thing earlier. I mean sure, there are invincibility frames on transformations, but final attacks don't have any because they don't usually need them."

"Please, stop before you go too far. I don't think I can handle you getting too meta." Star Blazing scolded, folding her arms as she gave another yawn. "Well then, we managed to eliminate a major player from the fight, still have the Mascot and ensured that the Guardians are fully functional. Seems like we have the winning hand for once, right?"

"Pallad!" 5pb rushed over, a spray of notes sending both fighters back as she grabbed onto the man's arm. He desperately clawed at the ground, trying to catch as many of the pieces as he could, but he simply couldn't collect it all as the girl whisked him away, several screens spinning above their heads before they disappeared.

 _ **STAGE SELECT!**_

"Now look what we have here." Star Blazing remarked as the pair approached where Pallad had rested, picking up the small shards that still remained of the gashat gear dual. "This should be good enough. Have to take it back and check whether it'll actually be suitable though."

"I don't see any reason why not. With this, we can finally proceed with the next chapter of our evolution. Soon, we shall reach the same power as a true god!"

Their laughter echoed around a destroyed street.

* * *

5pb released her transformation as they returned to the Genmeer Basilicom, though she was quick to duck down when she was met by what seemed to be a whole bunch of… peaches? The fruits were flung with such incredible force that they almost embedded themselves into the wall – it would be hell to clean up later. Bauen from the other side of a safety shield merely shook his head, crossing off and scribbling upon the sheet of paper within his grasp.

"Peach and Dancer, no good." The older rider muttered, tapping the paper with a pencil as he rolled his hand over several bottles sitting innocently beside him. On his other side sat several combinations, the Peach and Dancer bottle joining them from their rather precarious position within the complex machinery before him, several meters whirring and buzzing and beeping and bubbling.

"What happened to Pallad, I thought you were going to keep them occupied." IF pointed out as the agent poked her head out from behind a second shield, Compa and Nepgear sticking out from beneath her. 5pb merely helped the black haired man sit upon the sofa, the shattered remains of his transformation device still gathered in his hands. "Is that…?"

"They knew he was stronger than them. They ambushed him when I was occupied with their help..." the idol spoke, a few tears coming from her eyes. She had been the one specifically asked for to help, yet she had been able to do nothing while Pallad had his transformation device destroyed. She could've at least drawn her attention away just a second earlier, perhaps even have caught a sight of the other before they got a chance to shoot.

"Don't doubt yourself. You're an idol, not a fighter; be glad you managed to destroy those Guardians." Pallad immediately answered, 5pb merely flinching back more. She was an idol, but she had been given her power by Lord Game Heart himself – he was expecting him to take care of Genmeer and she was failing him. "I can't believe I didn't expect that, talk about a nice little twist. I've had people try and steal gashats before, but to have them destroyed? Never, I never thought it would be done…"

"Well while you've been doing that, we've haven't yet managed to find a working combination of fullbottles that will accept the great Nebula Gas presence." Bauen explained, casually grabbing two and chucking them over to Compa. "It's the sort of work which you can't really do with any finesse, just try it out and see whether they work. Mind you, I would get behind a shield just in case they don't."

In fact, Compa was already retreating by the time that the two bottles were properly placed within their holders, specially designed to only allow a small amount of their transgel solids into the reactor chamber. The smallest traces of Gear and Hunter fell into the pipes, purple and black combining within the chamber with the mysterious gas as the liquid was returned to its gaseous form. At first, the trio of girls were expecting there to be an incredibly large explosion of some random substance, just as it had been for the other experiments (now that Pallad and 5pb had a good look around, there were chess pieces and dice scattered about – just what could these fullbottles do?) yet what actually happened was far more positive.

A beautiful, almost ethereal glow overtook the small chamber as Bauen let out a cheer, plucking the purple and black fullbottles from their place just as Toei smashed through the door… again. This time though, she was clutching a black object within her hands, throwing it over to the scientist as Nepgear joined him, eyes sparkling with curiosity.

"Those blueprints were pretty weird, nothing like anything I've seen at least." The oracle remarked, only sparing a brief glance towards the door that lay broken upon the ground as she spoke. "Of course, considering my incredible skills, it was no time at all before I managed to replicate what you wished for!"

"Um, Miss Toei? You've been working on that for a while now. Wasn't it just a case of following instructions?" Nepgear asked, said woman falling flat upon her face before a cough restored her usual vigour and energy.

"Never mind that! Let's focus more on the fact that you've even managed to design this thing."

Bauen's response was to push the Gear fullbottle onto one of the connectors upon the bottom, one half of the object lighting up to reveal the gear which made up one of Build's eyes done in purple, followed by the crosshair eye as he put the Hunter bottle up to it next. What had once been black now shone in a brilliant silver, purple and black coming together with the text 'Gear Hunter Sparkling' emblazoned clearly onto the front.

"Now that we have that out of the way, let's see what else we can do about our situation. After all, we can't leave a CPU Candidate unarmed." The old man declared, Nepgear practically bouncing by his side as a sigh escaped IF.

"Well as long as it isn't as messy as this stuff was. I just want to take a nap at this point."

* * *

"We're back!" Compa called out a while later, having retreated with IF and 5pb (much to the brunette's delight) when they had finalised their plan, greeted on their return to the sound of machinery being constructed and general debate. Toei was messing around with a strange little packet of blue, squeezing the living daylights out of it while Nepgear and Bauen muttered over a sky blue belt of sorts, a spanner of silver decorating a yellow lever jutting out of the opposite side of a container. Pallad instead was simply lazing by the side, messing with the shards remaining of his gashat gear dual. "How far have you managed to get?"

" _We bring reports of another attack plaguing the Shakariki shopping centre, more of the strange robots running rampant and destroying all in sight. Those who have been braving the outsides should retreat to their homes immediately!"_

"Everything's ready and it seems as if our friends are tired of waiting for us to act." Bauen declared, the rider rising from his seat with the build driver held tightly in his hand as the second took hold of the can sitting upon the desk. This time, we're going to do this properly; they aren't going to know what's hit them."

"I'll help with the back up!" 5pb declared, clenching her fists as she stood in the doorway, pink eyes burning with a new fire. "I won't just be useless this time, I'll make a change in this battle."

"If what you did last time was what you considered useless, then I can't wait to see you fight this time." Pallad joked, but it struggled to actually reach his face. A held out hand allowed Toei to throw the item in her hand over to the Genmeer CPU Candidate while his other took the belt waiting upon the workbench, nodding to Bauen.

"So we taking the bikes?" IF questioned, looking out of the window. "The Shakariki shopping centre is on the other side of Genmeer if I remember it properly."

She was answered by 5pb grabbing a hold of her hand, placing a green driver upon her waist so that a slot similar to IF's appeared done in the same electric green as the main front piece, taking Compa's hand while Bauen grabbed onto Pallad's shoulder.

 _ **STAGE SELECT!**_

The teleportation brought them to right in the main entrance of the centre, where Guardians continued to ravage the surrounding shops without taking a single moment's notice of the group that had gathered before them. One of the did however try to blow up the shop they appeared before, meaning that as soon as they regained their bearings, they leapt away seconds before the explosion could rip them to shreds.

"I thought I said I wanted things to be less messy!" IF complained, drawing out her qatars as she blocked a pair of bayonets that were directed towards her, Compa slowly moving towards her as the pink haired girl melted a group under the power of her mixture. "Right Gear: power up!"

"Got it!" the CPU Candidate of Planeptune declare as she flipped over the guardians that threatened to skewer her, the brightest glow taking over her form mid-air so as she came down, she was followed by a beam of light that left little more than scrap metal. Of course, seeing the others in battle was all that was needed to push Bauen to join the brawl, Pallad catching the drillcrusher in the air.

"Stick to that for now, we'll need the surprise." The older man ordered, slamming the Build Driver onto his waist as a belt of yellow wrapped around him, purple and black being shaken furiously. "Henshin!"

 _ **HUNTER!**_

 _ **GEAR!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

 _ **DANGAN NO INVENTOR! GEAR-HUNTER! YEAH!**_

Bullets ripped through metal as Kamen Rider Build launched forward, the robots proving to be no match as Pallad tried his best to keep up, a firm shove lodging the weapon into a guardian's stomach which meant that pulling the trigger to activate the drill wasn't a pretty sight.

"Let me join as well!" 5pb's guitar was strong enough to release a debilitating soundwave, the robots pausing for a moment for their auditory sensors to recover, but it was too late; they weren't well equipped to deal with an instrument being slammed into their main CPUs located in their head. The moment that the group grew too big however, it was time to transform.

 _ **DO RE MI FA DJ!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON, LET'S JAM!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON LET'S JAM!**_

"Fiftieth stage!"

 _ **DUAL UP!**_

 _ **HEY-HEY-HEY! DOREMIFA DJ!**_

"Now, now: surely you want a better fight than just robots?" Terror Burst remarked, the man shooting out of a cloud of steam with his transteam gun firing. Bauen sliced through the incoming projectiles, rushing forward to meet Terror Burst in a deadlock of steel. A firm kick to the purple and black rider sent Build backwards, only the man's quick actions switching his weapon to its gun form allowing him to deter the steam fighter from following after. "We can have so much fun together!"

Come now little girl! If a trained CPU Candidate couldn't face us, how do you expect to do so with a half assed power?" Star Blazing added from behind Bauen, said man whirling around to see sparks flying around from 5pb's chestplate. The distraction allowed Terror Burst to fire freely upon his back, the two riders "With Game Brother out of the fight, all we have left are the scraps. You have a Gamer driver too girl, yet you can' even use it!"

The blue haired girl flinched back at the accusation, only Bauen putting the tech shooter in the way of the steam blade preventing Kamen Rider Tune from being cut. "Please, might as well just let it happen. After all, we hold your mascot and you have no way of beating us; your journey ends here."

"We're still here!" a sudden explosion by the side however had Terror Burst turn from his position behind Bauen to where the last of the Guardians remaining shattered to pieces, Purple sister launching from within the flames to strike at his back. Star Blazing was fast enough to duck out of the way, focused energy coming but mere millimetres away from her body as she fell back. A hand held out had both Build and Tune back on their feet, blue eyes turning to star down the two enemies. You may have beaten Pallad alone, but that doesn't mean you can beat us all!"

"Come on, give it to me!" IF roared, a vicious smile upon the guild agent's face as she sliced through the body of one of the guardians as if they were nothing more than butter, the sword fullbottle in her off hand as she cut through the machines with nothing more than single swings, laughter escaping her as she did so. "Barely a challenge!"

"Woah, no touching Mr robots!" Compa cried out after just as one of the Guardians sought to pierce her with its bayonet, instead re3ceiving a needle to its head that was repeated jammed further with each strike until there was a crater all the way through, Compa not bothering to remove the metal husk as she turned the exposed end and shot out acid that melted its friends. "Is this the power of the fullbottles?"

"Damn it, guess we'll just have to end this quickly!" Star Blazing declared, replacing the Night fullbottle into her transteam gun, pulling the trigger before they even had a moment to react.

 _ **Night…!**_

 _ **Steam break…! Night…!**_

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX BREAK!**_

She wasn't fast enough, Pallad ploughing through her with the wrath of the Drillcrusher spinning at max RPM. The CPU Candidate let a grin appear on his face as he flipped through the air, landing on his feet while Star Blazing was left with a far less graceful collision with the ground. "You forget, I can fight outside of my rider form. And besides…"

 _ **SCLASH DRIVER!**_

A silver belt wrapped around Pallad's waist as soon as he placed the blue driver to his body, a yellow lever showing a wrench tightening a bolt while a pair of clamps sat in preparation to receive a special item. The sight had Star Blazing and Terror Burst recoiling, a slight amount of actual fear, the slightest amount but still noticeable, entering Star Blazing's voice.

"What is that!? It wasn't in any of the plans!" the woman cried out, Bauen giving a chuckle as he reached behind his own back.

"No, they weren't. You see, unlike those such as yourself who must rely on stolen plans, I am perfectly capable of creating new designs. Well, I suppose you could class something like this as more of an improvement than a new design."

Showing a silver can, Build shook it up and down while several equations flowed before his eyes, only stopping when he pulled the tab on the top, the gear and crosshairs upon the front of the can lighting up as a pair of connectors shot out of the bottom. Pallad moved to beside him as he took out a small packet, twisting the cap and letting g his fingers show the puzzle piece emblazoned upon the front.

"Now then, shall we start the experiment Bauen?"

"This is certainly something that makes my heart dance; let us do this Pallad!"

 _ **GEAR-HUNTER SPARKLING!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

 _ **PUZZLE JELLY!**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **TSUBURERU! NAGARERU! AFUREDERU!**_

As a measuring beaker surrounded Pallad, a special form of the snap builder appeared around Bauen, two halves of the Build ensignia making each rack, the pipes that formed the armour instead filling with purple and black fizzing liquid while the beaker Pallad was in gained a strange dark blue jelly.

The two halves slammed onto Bauen to add white highlights all around his armour, bubbles and sharp edges appearing all around the Gear-Hunter form, a gun forming an antenna behind the crosshair eye while an electrode crackling with electricity appeared behind the gear.

 _ **SHUWA TO HAJiKERU! GEAR-HUNTER SPARKLING! YEAH-YEAH!**_

The beaker around the CPU Candidate twisted, crushing against Pallad's body until it formed a silver body with boots of gold. Whatever jelly filled the container was sent sky high as well as flying out of the top of a hive like golden eyed helmet, forming a slightly translucent version of his Puzzle gamer helmet, shoulder pads and arms, the chest regaining a golden hue.

 _ **PUZZLE IN PARA-DX! BURRAH!**_

"The energy levels of these riders… It's not the same as Game Brother was before, but we're getting close!" Terror Burst cursed, numbers too great to be expected appearing upon his visor. Bauen held up his hand, meeting Pallad in a high-five as they dashed forward. Bubbles surged around his foot as jelly came around Pallad's, a dramatic burst of electricity coming from Terror Burst's armour. Slamming into Star Blazing, the two were sent skidding backwards in an undignified heap and Bauen unleashing the full might of the Drillcrusher and tech shooter at the same time most certainly wasn't helping matters.

 _ **TWIN BREAKER!**_

 _ **ATTACK MODE!**_

"Come on, let's make this interesting!" Para-DX urged as he held his hand forth, a weapon forming upon his left hand. A screwdriver's head in gold struck forth, spinning rapidly as it dug into Star Blazing's body with each strike. When it collided with the steam blade, it was strong enough to knock it to the side, barely a nuisance as Pallad backed away slightly.

 _ **BEAM MODE!**_

Flipping forth the two white barrels turned away from the front sent the screwdriver back into its sheathe, letting the man continue with a blaze of energy shots that tore through the woman's defences, her cries of pain filling the air.

Bauen was busy too, dual wielding the drillcrusher and techshooter in a manner far too wild for Terror Burst to control. A series of red lasers attaching to the steam fighter had him looking down in alarm, several pinpoint accurate shots piercing through the smallest gaps in his defences. With the two on their last legs, Bauen and Pallad stood next to each other, their stances far more confident than they had started the battle with.

"Shall we end this here?" Build suggested, already cranking his lever and watching as the lights within the Gear-Hunter Sparkling can's eyes alternated. Pallad merely gave a joyous nod, slamming his hand down onto the sclash driver's lever in order to force the clamps to squeeze as much of the jelly out as possible.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **SPARKLING FINISH!**_

 _ **SCRAP ATTACK!**_

Ghost images of various power ups flooded Para-DX's body as Bauen let loose with a roundhouse kick, bubbles filled with electricity covering every inch of the space around the two transteam system wielders. Fully trapped, they were unable to do anything as Pallad leapt into the air, foot held forward as he flew towards them. Bauen gather around the tech shooter's barrel before he let loose at the exact moment Para-DX's attack connected, a tremendous explosion of electricity and flame filling the air.

The end result was two untransformed people, the blonde woman and a redhead man. Under normal circumstances, perhaps he might've been a handsome figure; covered in dust, smoke and soot upon what was normally a fine white suit, he instead looked all the image of a defeated man. Pallad happily plucked the mascot from their grasp, but they were far too quick with the transteam gun.

"This isn't the end!" the man screamed to the sky, smoke sending them to wherever they had retreated. For now however, they were no longer a danger that couldn't be handled.

"Well, I'm glad to be out of that predicament…" the mascot sighed and if it had any limbs at all, perhaps it would be stretching and cleaning itself down. "Before I knew it, I have my power supressed to barely anything and I'm being taken away from my resting place! Kind folk, I must thank you for rescuing me!"

"This may seem like a big request seeing as you've just gone through all that, but we're trying to help rescue the CPUs from the Gamindustri Graveyard. Do you think you can help us with that?" Nepgear asked as she approached, the Mascot letting out a low hum before it spoke.

"To know that my assistance could help the CPUs return is definitely nice, but I will not just give my power to anyone." The Mascot declared. "Tell me Pallad, CPU Candidate of Genmeer. Do you trust these folk enough that they would be worthy of my power?"

"They've helped me this far and they have a noble goal: they are definitely worthy." Pallad was quick to answer, Bauen letting a smile appear upon his wrinkled face as the Mascot chuckled.

"Well then, allow me to grant you some of my strength. Brave Kamen Rider Build, Purple Sister – may you have luck on your travels!"

* * *

 **And that's the end of that for now. I first thought of how I could change up the dynamic a while ago and once the sclash driver was introduced, I noticed they didn't have a 'scrap attack' user. then I wondered what new jelly I could add and then Pallad just so happened to cross my mind and it was born. I also wanted to keep the idea of slowly gaining more and more CPU power as I did with Mightydimension, hence why I decided to turn what was rabbit-tank sparkling into gear-hunter sparkling; the jingle is generic enough that I don't have to change anything while making the armour itself more unique.**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	10. 10 - the Lowee children

**Hey there people. Let's talk more at the end because Build keeps stealing the ideas I had for this story! Let's just go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: Both of us are off to a new world it seems. Though to be fair, ours doesn't reside inside the stomach of a titan!_

 _Lilith: Woah, everything's so snowy! It's just like christmas!_

 _Bauen: We don't talk about christmas here. Christmas has some bad memories for us all._

 _Lilith: What!? How can you not like christmas!?_

 _B + L: Rider once more! Don't forget me!_

* * *

"Thank goodness our first experiments were a success." Bauen remarked, sinking into the Genmeer Basilicom's sofa with a deep sigh. They had easily returned the Mascot to its appropriate resting place after being gifted its power, all of them falling to whatever comfortable seat they could find. "The Sclash Driver system was far too unstable for my liking. I was hoping to do a bit more research for it, but we couldn't waste any time."

"It worked though and I'm happy with that!" Pallad declared, the boy leaning over the back of the sofa the old man was on before flipping over the piece of furniture. "Now, they'll hesitate with attacking Genmeer I couldn't thank you all enough."

"Don't worry about it. We're just doing all we can!" Nepgear answered, a bright smile still on her face as the Planeptune CPU Candidate flexed her fist. "The power of three Mascots… now it's just two more to go!"

"Well, don't let me keep you then. I'm sure you don't want to be stuck here any longer than you have to be." Pallad declared from his ground position. "You've already done enough for Genmeer, I'll be able to take it from here."

"If you're sure, then we should probably get back to our hotel room and grab our stuff." If responded, though her voice did seem a bit subdued. Bauen only gave her a brief look; perhaps she was more tired than he had expected. Pallad's answer was a bright smile, the black haired boy throwing his arms wide.

"Well, you're all welcome to come back to the Basilicom whenever you're around. Hopefully, we can actually play some games next time!" he bid farewell, watching the group filter out of the room. As soon as the last one left however, the boy continued his speech, not even turning to face the girl standing by his side. "You should go with them 5pb. They need your help now more than I do."

The blue idol turned to Pallad with a look of shock, wavelengths going through pink eyes as she immediately began poking her fingers.

"A-are you really s-sure? I was meant to-." The girl stuttered out, a light yelp escaping her as Pallad's arm fell upon her shoulders. It meant that she couldn't look away from the surprisingly serious look upon his face, a rare expression from the CPU Candidate of Genmeer. "Um, Pallad?"

"You really do treasure your promise to Egi, don't you?" the question came out of nowhere and 5pb dissolved into an even worse stuttering mess, only pausing when Pallad's chuckles came to let her face turn red. "Still, you've played your part here; you're destined for something greater than just the mysterious character than helps in the night. If you go after them, then I know you can grow stronger. Maybe even strong enough to surpass someone like me."

"Stronger… than you?" the thought was impossible – the only people she knew that were stronger than Pallad were the CPUs! Could she really reach the same level as them? The same level as Egi?

"Of course you can. All you have to do is go out of that door and ask them." He held 5pb's look for a moment more before silently gesturing towards the door, 5pb pulling her own Gashat Gear dual for a brief moment before her resolve hardened. With a confident step, she followed after, intent on finding the group. "Egi Yuuno, I think I can see why you put so much faith in that girl. She has the potential to go far."

* * *

"IF?" the agent had been sitting on her bed, staring at the grey sword fullbottle in her hand as she gently swilled the liquid within. Her stuff neatly packed by the side, the girl looked almost entranced by its movement, something that had Nepgear worried. "You've been here for a while now, everyone's packed up and ready to head off to Lowee; are you okay?"

" _Come on, give it to me!" IF roared, a vicious smile upon the guild agent's face as she sliced through the body of one of the guardians as if they were nothing more than butter, the sword fullbottle in her off hand as she cut through the machines with nothing more than single swings, laughter escaping her as she did so. "Barely a challenge!"_

"That last battle… it was kind of strange." IF slowly spoke, never taking her eyes off the bottle. "It wasn't like I didn't know what I was doing or anything like that, but like I… I wanted to destroy as many of them as possible."

"Well that makes sense, doesn't it?" the lilac haired girl answered, tilting her head in confusion as a grunt of frustration left IF. Running a hand through her hair, the girl was finally able to tear away her green eyes from the bottle.

"What I mean is, when there were no more robots to destroy I wanted more. When I destroyed the last guardian, I just wanted to keep fighting – I was looking for another opponent even after the fight was over and for the briefest moment I, I… I wanted to hurt you."

The admission clearly pained the agent from her expression, Nepgear merely approaching the bed silently. If closed her eyes in preparation, only to flinch when she first felt the arms come around her.

"I know that you won't hurt me. We're friends after all, right?" Nepgear remarked, a gentle smile on her face as she closed her eyes.

"But I couldn't help it. I just wanted to keep fighting and the only people left to fight were my own allies…" the words came as barely more than a whisper, but each one of them were drenched in fear and worry. "What if I don't snap out of it next time? What if I actually try and attack you?"

"Then we'll be here to stop you and bring you back to your sense. All of us. That's what friends do." From behind the door, Bauen listened silently to the cries that escaped the room, the lowest of sighs escaping his lips. When he gave them the bottles, this was what he was trying to avoid. But to stop now would mean risking their lives should they ever be exposed to the nebula gas… he would simply have to continue the risk. The experiment _had_ to work.

The scientist was brought from his musings by the sound of rapid footsteps heading in his direction, curiously peering around the corner to receive a face full of idol that knocked the man off his feet. A low groan escaped the both of them as they sat up, Bauen looking over 5pb as she held a hand to her head.

"Now what is an idol like you doing here?"

"I… I want to join your group!" 5pb near yelled, bowing her head rapidly as she did so. She refused to raise it for a good minute before the lack of an answer sent her resolve plummeting, unwilling to make eye contact.

"Sure."

"I'm sorr- wait, what?"

"Well, I highly doubt I could keep any of the others back if they heard that I refused such a well-known person from travelling with us. Besides, a strong fist by my side will not be remiss." Bauen explained with a light chuckle, his face quickly becoming pensive with his next sentence. "Of course, that's not the only reason. You see, IF is a clear fan of yours. Considering how she feels at the moment, could I trouble you with making sure she stays in a good state of mind?"

The request wasn't a particularly difficult one, 5pb nodding readily, but in the time the blue haired siren managed to scan over the older man's face, she saw something interesting, something that made her smile.

"You really do care for the others, don't you?" 5pb stated. "I can see it in your face, you're worried for her and you feel as if it's your fault."

"…It is my fault and if letting you come along will help, then that only makes this much easier, doesn't it?" Bauen answered with a low chuckle, holding out a wrinkled hand that took one much younger than itself in a firm shake. "5pb, welcome to the team. Do you mind if I refer to you as Lyrica?"

"Please do so. It makes me much more comfortable."

"Alright then. IF, Nepgear, I'm coming in! I've managed to find a friend to join us!"

* * *

 _ **BAKUSOU BIKE!**_

 _ **BUILD CHANGE!**_

By letting Nepgear take flight, they managed to fit 5pb into their little bike transport system, taking them from the wonderful temperatures of the land of Midnight Majesty to something far frostier. The girl's clothes clearly weren't made for this sort of weather, yet 5pb never let out a single shiver or moan, something that the scientist was quick to pick up on.

"Ah, I've performed in Lowee before, so I've had to deal with this before… is that our destination?" the siren pointed out, an almost magical city becoming clearer in the distance.

"Wow, it's… so cold… but the scenery really takes your breath away." Purple sister commented from her higher position, glancing over the snow covered trees with a small smile. It all looked like it belonged in a book more than real life, bright colours simply sparkling under the flakes that fell.

"I think the Basilicom should be simply enough to find. Never been to Lowee myself." If stated, steadily accelerating ahead of Bauen's bike as she pushed the yellow vehicle as far as it could. "Let's get there as fast as we can!"

"Without killing yourselves please!" Bauen answered back but nonetheless, he too pushed up his speed to match until they were almost barrelling into Lowee's main entrance, a small cry escaping 5pb and Compa as the two drivers slid to a stop just before things became properly populated. "Right, we should make a beeline to the… is that the underling girl?"

"Step right up? Join the ASIC group today and any game you can imagine, any game under the sun can be yours: for free!" the pale skin girl cried out into the streets, turning more than a few curious heads. "You've heard about those attacks in Genmeer, right? Well those who join AASIC will also get free insurance through the new Guardians –designed with your safety in mind! These robots won't let anything like that happen to _you_ if you join!"

Of course, the underling was nowhere near as enthusiastic as her voice made her out to be. Someone like her, reduced to barely more than a grunt passing out fliers and making recruitments of the streets! She could be living a much better life, but then those stupid idiots got themselves involved.

"Stupid idiots? Would you happen to be referring to us perhaps?"

"Yeah. Transforming baby, old fat scientist guy, snobby agent and the dumb chick!" underling answered, whirling around with wide eyes a second later to be faced with a rather disgruntled group. "Hey, how the hell did you hear my thoughts!?"

"Well, I'm not in my youngest years… am I really that fat though?" Bauen muttered, poking at his stomach with the smallest cloud of depression floating around his head. The cloud only grew as Nepgear joined him, poking her fingers together dejectedly.

"Transforming baby…? Do I really look that little?" the lilac hair girl muttered.

"I didn't realise having some semblance of manners meant being a snob." IF scoffed in addition, cracking her knuckles with a grin. "Never mind that. Seeing as we've managed to stumble across you, I guess that makes this the perfect time to beat you up and bring you down, right?"

"Yeah, you've been a really naughty girl! Anyone who calls me a dumb chick won't get away with it!" Compa declared, pointing her finger towards the underling before it faltered slightly. "I was the dumb chick in the name calling, right?"

"Urgh, I don't have time for this business." The underling cursed beneath her breath, looking around the area. Surely there had to be something she could use to aid her escape… perfect. "Hey you, stray kid! Keep quiet – you're my ticket out of here alive!"

"Let the girl go. You will _not_ like what happens if you don't." Bauen promised, simmering as the underling merely stuck out her tongue at the man. The little brunette dressed in blue and white in her hands squirmed around madly, trying to kick her way out but a gentle lift meant she couldn't even touch the ground.

"Sorry gramps, but ASIC is all about playing dirty. See ya!" the underling declared, dashing off as fast as she could. IF was silent as she dashed after her, Compa following after with a yell of "Chhhhaaarrggge!"

"Come on Nepgear, Lyrica!" Bauen called after, swinging his leg over the nearly forgotten bikes. "If she thinks she can beat a motorbike, then she's got another thing coming!"

A pink dressed brunette wandered the streets, puffing out her cheeks as she walked. There wasn't a single sight of her sister anywhere!

"Come on Rom, where are you?" she cried out, stomping her feet in the snow. "It's not like you to run away like this…"

"Okay, I should be safe here…" the underling panted as she sat herself down on the frozen floor. The Lowee Global Expo was no exception to the freezing temperatures and how the machines even managed to function in such a temperature was something to admire. Her pause meant that the underling could finally let go of the sobbing child by her side. "Urgh, shut your yap kid! Damn it, need to ditch the deadweight kid somewhere before her crying gets me in deep…"

"I think it's a little too late for that!"

"Oh come on! How did you get here so fast!?" the underling cried out.

"Well, it does help that we have motorbikes…" 5pb was the one to point out, turning her head briefly as the pale skinned girl snarled in her direction.

"Who cares about that? Just let the kid go and you can walk away from this mostly unharmed." IF promised, her Qatar already out and pointing towards the kidnapper. The snarl on the underling's face slowly became a grin at the threat though.

"Are you nuts? This kid's my free pass out of this! Or what, you gonna try and beat me up when I have a tiny meat shield?" she taunted, grabbing the little brunette's arm and waving her about to her cries. A growl escaped IF, her fist tightening around the sword's grip. It wasn't as if someone so small could actually work as a full shield, so if she just struck fast enough-!

"Don't." Bauen's hand stopped her mere centimetres from piercing an utterly frightened girl's face, the kidnap victim looking between the metal and the guild agent holding it. Shaking her head in frustration, IF pulled back, the underling turning away with a smirk.

"Knew it. Well, why don't you lot have some fun with my friends here instead?" but before she could even try to push the trigger on her remote, a massive explosion rocked their world, forcing the group to look away. Once the coast was clear, they were treated to the sight of a white leotard wearing young girl hovering above them, pink hair and blue eyes steadily approaching the other child.

"Rom, are you okay?" the new arrival asked, tenderly looking over the now named Rom's body. Her response was to finally let go of the tears she had been holding back, throwing her arms around her saviour with a loud cry of,

"Ram! RAAAAMMMM!"

"This is unbelievable, another CPU!?" Without her meat shield, the underling was barely going to be able to defeat the group normally! Said CPU turned towards her, a gentle cry of fear escaping the green haired girl as her stance hardened.

"How dare you make Rom play hostage and make her cry! You'll pay you dummy!" Ram declared, turning to Rom with a statement that had both sides reeling. "Come on Rom, you activate HDD too! That way we can both beat this jerk-face into last week!"

And then the blue dressed girl wasn't standing there anymore. Instead, as the burst of light faded away, a mirror image of Ram appeared hovering above the ground, only the blue hair and pink eyes allowing an observer to tell the difference.

"The CPU Candidates of Lowee…" Compa whispered out, a bright smile on her face. "I'm glad that Miss Rom is okay now! But if she was a CPU Candidate, why didn't she change before?"

"Probably too frightened to act." Bauen answered, pulling out a pair of bottles with a vigorous shake. "But at least now we don't have to wait around in order to end this. Mascot of Genmeer, show me your power…"

The bottle the mascot had produced was a deep rich purple in colour, a magnifying glass depicted in the centre with an exclamation mark and a question mark printed upon it, Bauen slipping it in along with the green USB memory he had received before.

 _ **TANTEI!**_

 _ **USB MEMORY!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"Everyone, it's time to move out!" the man yelled out, cranking the lever of the Build driver, yet the piping he had expected to form never came. Seeing as nothing else seemed to be happening either, the man looked down to his waist in confusion, merely giving a shrug. It clearly registered.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin?"

 _ **DOUBLE!**_

As music of two types fused into a single jingle, the frost winds of Lowee suddenly whipped around the room, biting at their skin as it brought shivers to them all. Bauen seemed to be the only one unaffected, flecks of armour picking up in the tornado as it centered in on his body. Ever so gradually, the pieces began to click together to form into an armour of green and black, the left half becoming pure black while the other half took on the vibrant green. A scarf of silver formed upon the green section of his neck, a silver line separating the entire thing down the centre of his body and head. A red jewel sat between crimson compound eyes, antenna formed of a W.

"Now, it's time to count up your crimes!" Bauen declared, turning to the side and pointing forward before he lost his pose in confusion. "Wait, what is this? A different Rider? Never mind, go with it!"

Each of his punches seemed to hold the strength of the winds themselves, smashing through the underling's pitiful defences with ease. Purple energy formed around one fist in a powerful uppercut that sent the girl into the air screaming, only to be met by a hurricane shrouded foot sending her down to the ground, directly towards IF.

"Come on then, let me show you what I can do!" the agent cried out, shaking the sword fullbottle in her off hand as her water bit into her flesh with an immense amount of force, more than it really should've. The sight of the little grey bottle had Nepgear give pause in following through – she had been frightened by the effects before, so why was she already willing to use it again? "I just have to get used to this… and you're the perfect punching bag to help me do that!"

"Hey, it's our turn! Move out of the way!" Rom called out excitedly, If rolling away to avoid the two pink blurs that soared through the sky, staffs waving as a barrage of ice came down onto the underling in a frosty cage. Soon after followed flame, wind and giant boulders conjured from nowhere, a skilful display of elemental manipulation for ones who appeared at first glance to be so young. "We've totally got this win in the bag!"

"I'm not going to be outdone by a kid." Scoffed IF, ready to launch forward once more if it wasn't for the sudden grip of a concerned CPU Candidate, the brunette turning with a frown to Nepgear as she tried to tug her hand out from the lilac haired girl's. "Hey, what gives Gear?"

"Should you really be using the fullbottle even with how you were feeling before" Nepgear asked in return, grabbing the bottle for herself despite IF's objections. "It was causing you to act more aggressively, you should be careful with something that can alter your personality like that!"

"How about we end this now, Lyrica?" Bauen suggested as he rushed past the two arguing girls, 5pb giving a small nod as she let loose with a riff that shook the very ground, the shockwave passing over the underling as it shattered the icy cage that formed around her.

"Hey, what are you doing!?" Rom called out with a pout, only to be answered by Bauen's shaking finger as he cranked the lever of the build driver, shards of the shattered ice gathering around him as he gradually rose to the air to the sound of gears.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

"I highly doubt that she has the strength to run very far at this point and the remains will surely help to improve my own attack; a win-win situation." Bauen calmly explained, kicking forth with both of his legs. "Now, the finisher!"

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

But then the strangest of things happened, for the silver line that ran down the centre of Bauen's new suit suddenly began to take on a flame red hue before quite literally splitting, half of Bauen's body sliding forth slightly faster than the other half. It was quite a surreal experience – you could literally see into Bauen's body (technically, for the actual only thing you could see was the red energy), but the underling had more important things to think about as the two feet smashed into her with a resounding explosion.

"Damn it… I can't believe I'm using the thing those two weirdos gave me." The underling cursed, pulling out a small grenade like object and pulling the pin before Bauen or any other could question it, surrounding her in a huge puff of smoke before it was only her voice that remained. "I'll get you next time!"

"That fight was far too tiring for my taste." Bauen remarked as he pulled out the fullbottles of his driver, the new Double armour fading away to pieces as the stray breeze lifted them away. "Using another kamen rider's power still is much more draining than my typical capabilities."

"I'm sure you'll get better at it Bauen. Just got to build up that tolerance!" Compa placated with a hand on the older man's shoulder, eliciting a chuckle from him. Before long though, his attention was quickly diverted to IF, the man stomping over and snatching the bottle from where Nepgear and the girl were fighting over it.

"Your reaction to the bottle is just as I feared. I had hoped that perhaps using a purified bottle would prevent the side effects from making themselves prevalent as much as they are." The man muttered as he looked to the little grey item, tucking it safely into his pocket. "It seems Compa may just naturally have a higher resistance to it than you."

"What? That's not fair, I'm an actual proper fighter!" the girl whined, crossing her arms with a light pout. Not that it actually made Bauen budge at all, for he simply gave a small huff as he secured his coat around him tighter.

"So… who are all these weird people?" Ram questioned, the pink haired warrior giving a small look of disgust to their gathered group.

"They're… the ones who came to save me." Rom answered.

"Well they did a lousy job at it. They're all big fat failures!"

"Um, excuse me. You wouldn't happen to be the CPU Candidates of Lowee, would you?" Nepgear calmly interrupted, though she couldn't entirely hide the wince that came to her face at being called a failure. Such was the power of a child's cold logic.

"Yep! I'm Ram and this is Rom. We're the CPU's awesome twin sisters!" Ram proudly boasted, puffing up her chest while Rom merely gave a small shy wave.

"That's great, I'm so happy we ran into each other! I'm a CPU Candidate too, my sister is Neptune." Nepgear continued, only for her enthusiasm to die down when the two twins looked at each other inconfusion.

"Neptune? She was the CPU of…"

"Planeptune."

"Yeah, I totally knew that! That means you're a Planeptune CPU. That also means you're our enemy!"

Enemy, enemy…!"

The accusation came from nowhere and it took a good second for any present to properly digest the words; the only thing that could properly explain their expressions at that moment was sheer confusion.

"What!? W-why am I your enemy!?" Nepgear questioned, reeling back as a bead of sweat rolled down her brow. The two white sisters were surprisingly enthusiastic about branding her as their enemy, as seen by the fierce way in which Ram pointed her finger accusingly at Nepgear.

"You're a CPU Candidate from somewhere really far away, so that means you have to be here in order to steal all of our shares!" the pink haired CPU Candidate explained with what was clearly faultless logic. "Yeah, my logic's great!"

"Some CPUs do that… I read it… in a book…" Rom added hesitantly, rising her hands in what was most likely meant to be a fighting pose, but merely ended up looking like a child trying to hide themselves from prying eyes.

"No, no that's not what we want to do. Please, just listen to -!" but Nepgear's pleas were left unheard, for a pair of staffs were pointed in their direction by two irate CPU Candidates.

"We won't let any of you do that! Prepare to be beaten you dummies!"

Bauen rose the drillcrusher in defence, but it could do little when the explosion wrapped around his body, sending him backwards. The same happened to Nepgear, for though the girl's speed was incredible when transformed, she wasn't so fortunate in her natural state leaving her a simple target for the tornado that launched her to the sky.

"Those children aren't listening to Ge-Ge at all!" Compa cried out as she ducked back, IF taking the brunt of the fireball that was launched in their direction, a sound wave from 5pb's guitar causing the second to dissipate under the pressure. "Do we really have to fight them though?"

"They're not giving us much choice!" IF growled in return, dashing forward as fast as she could muster. "Look at them though, they're just sitting ducks; all we have to do is get in close and they won't be able to do a thing!"

IF's cockiness faded when the earth beneath her seemed to erupt upwards, sending her onto her butt as the two Lowee girls sent the boulders sky high. They wouldn't be flying for too long however, for they would be sent down with the force of a thousand men, flames gathering beneath them as they sought to crush their foes.

 _ **GORILLA!**_

 _ **DIAMOND!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

 _ **KAGAYAKI NO DESTROYER! GORILLA-MOND! YEAH!**_

"Do they even know what restraint is!?" Bauen cursed as the gorilla arm smashed through the incoming boulders as fast as he could, shattered stones gathering in a ring around them as the rider fought. The curse of this form meant that he wasn't fast enough to completely stop every single one, the final rock only being stopped by the diamond defence. "I'm going to make a distraction, then you get in there immediately, understood?"

"Got it!"

"Compa, Lyrica, to me! Nepgear, with IF!"

 _ **ROSE!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

What followed was a battle through the air, Nepgear having to weave through attacks on both side as sound waves, strange acid and bullets from the drillcrusher tried to withstand an assault from ice, explosions and lightning. Right beside her, IF was like a tank, not even flinching as a stray icicle or flame hit her coat, only caring about the target at the end of the road.

"Don't think we're above hitting a child if this is how you're going to act!" the agent declared as she leapt up before the two CPU Candidates with Nepgear close by, the shock on their faces apparent as they met steel and energy blade. Just as predicted, there was little they could do when faced with a foe so close to their faces, staffs only able to do so much besides hitting someone with a weak blunt edge. The finisher came when they were too tired to defend themselves, Nepgear's swift sword strikes bringing them down to the ground where they were quickly rounded up with the Rose half's thorned whip.

"Ow…"

"Owwie…"

"You made Rom cry you meanies! Don't think this is over by a long shot!" Ram called out as she wiped away her sister's tears, the pair of them disappearing in a burst of light even in Bauen's whip bindings.

"Well I guess none of these things have ever gone through cleanly." IF sighed as she rolled her neck. "We're just gonna have to go check out the Basilicom and hope we can get things sorted."

* * *

"All that excitement set us back, but we finally managed to make it to the Basilicom." Nepgear sighed as they approached the building, far more technologically designed than the surrounding architecture. "Hello, is anyone here?"

The woman who responded to the summons was a beauty in red, pushing back her glasses as she delicately rushed over from her position. She had all of the airs of a teacher in all honesty, blue hair neatly tied into a pair of pigtails while robes of red covered a white dress with a gold medallion ribbon at her neck and a graduate's hat. She bowed to their group, a pleasant smile on her face as she greeted them.

"Yes, welcome all to Lowee's Basilicom." She said before her expression grew to be a little bit more serious. "Oh, my. Forgive my presumption, but are you Planeptune's…?"

"Yes. I'm Nepgear, the CPU Candidate of Planeptune. We came here today because we want to ask for your help." The lilac haired girl replied, a look of surprise overtaking the woman.

"My, for a CPU Candidate to come all this way to request our help must mean that there is something significant to discuss." She remarked, only to lightly knock the side of her head with a grin. "Pardon my manners. I am Mina Nishizawa, Lowee's Oracle. How may I be of service to you?"

Their story was told, Mina remaining quiet throughout the whole thing with only a few nods to give. With Rom and Ram acting as the CPU Candidates, it definitely made sense to Bauen that they would require a rather patient hand as their Oracle. It did make their lives far easier though.

"I see, so you seek the power of our Mascot." The blue haired woman hummed, looking to the small electronic notepad in her hands with a sorrowful look. "Unfortunately, I cannot do anything to assist you with your goals."

"There's… something wrong?" 5pb asked, receiving a solemn nod.

"Indeed, the mascot is on an incredibly important mission right now. If we were to take it away from its duties, our nation would be swallowed up in unprecedented chaos." Mina warned.

"Might we know of what the Mascot is doing? After all, if there is any way we may assist, then we may all win in the end." Bauen suggested, only to be rebuffed.

"All information pertaining the mission is currently classified. Such is the importance of the mascot's work to us." She answered, only for an impish smile to come across her face. "Of course, if someone were to come across the Mascot on their travels, then I certainly wouldn't be in a position to stop you should it agree. I'm sure it would be safe if people like you were to come across it. Now, I would be remiss if I let such well-travelled guests leave without giving something. So… how about a story?"

"A story?" IF voiced uncertainly, but she was willing to listen. There wasn't a reason why the oracle would bring it up if it didn't hold some sort of importance to them, right? "Sure, I guess we have time."

"Wonderful! Let me tell you about Lowee's lore regarding the deity of sin, Arfoire." Mina began with a small cough. "Arfoire was actually born here in Lowee, though rumour has it that she was created by an even greater evil. Little is known about this evil, but it surely had to be powerful to give birth to something like the deity of sin."

"ASIC is all about reviving the deity of sin, so I always thought it was a god that would grant people power…" IF mused with a hand to her chin. "But if there was something more powerful than Arfoire, surely they would want to revive them?"

"I suppose it's all a game of realistic expectations. It would be much easier to resurrect a less powerful offspring than it would be to bring forth the one who created it after all. Mina reasoned. "The deity of sin was created purely to assist her creator with bringing ruin and destruction… no mortal could ever hope to attain that sort of power. The reason why people believe that there was a more powerful creature before her was that Gamindustri was rapidly brought to the brink of destruction before she was first born through an unknown cause."

"But that still doesn't really explain why they would want to bring it back." 5pb pointed out. "Wouldn't the deity of sin also hurt them too?"

"Oh, they don't truly wish to revive either the deity of sin or her creator. It is merely a ploy they use to bring clout to their organisation." Mina reassured with the smallest of frowns. "If any of them had actually done any research on the deity of sin, they wouldn't be so quick to spread word of it in the public."

"It almost makes you believe that the lower ranked members of ASIC are being used as well." Bauen muttered under his breath. Nepgear caught his eyes; he looked rather pained at hearing the story, but why? Did he have some sort of link to it or something?

"If that is so, then I question their leader's sanity. This would ultimately lead to their own destruction as well." Mina responded, shaking her head. "Well I hope my little story helped to shed some light on the situation."

"A being that acts as a harbinger of destruction, Arfoire… and the person who created her." Nepgear whispered, a shiver going down the girl's back at the thought of facing something of such immense strength. "So that's what ASIC worships…"

"True, if a little basic. We probably shouldn't be keeping you for long Miss Nishizawa. Thank you for your time." Bauen concluded with a small bow, a smile coming to the oracle's lips as she returned the gesture. All too soon however, a rather familiar voice decided to pipe up in the distance, rapidly approaching from the bowels of the Basilicom's more restricted areas.

"Mina, food!"

"Hungry…"

"Now, now: mind your manners children. We have guests right now, so do you mind waiting just a moment longer?" Mina scolded lightly as Rom and Ram ran up to her, similar pouts upon their faces, though Ram's was a touch stronger in its impatience.

"Guests? Ah, it's the CPU dummy!" Ram yelled, hopping backwards in front of Rom as if they were going to blatantly attack them in the middle of a government building, the disappointment almost rolling off Mina's visage at the accusation.

"'CPU dummy'? How incredibly rude!"

"Ah, I think we have a bit of explaining to do here…" Bauen spoke for Nepgear. "After all, thing's haven't been too pretty between us."

* * *

 **Let's pause things there. Spoilers mentioned.**

 **So yeah, we're getting more and more news about how Zi-O works and we even have the Build ridewatch out to the public. Naturally, that means I have ideas about what I can do in the future. Specifically, Victory.I have a snippet for a proof of concept so if you don't really mind knowing how Zi-O's merchandise works, then please read this!**

"Are you ready to be consumed?" they chuckled as they cracked their neck. He had already scanned the general landmass of the dimension, it lacked the Genmeer that would give birth to that accursed Game Heart as well as the Planeptune labs, meaning the people here were far weaker than his home. "I don't even know why I'm asking, it's not as if this world can do anything about it!

"Ah, it's you!" their hand paused just above the lever to their driver at the call of recognition; there were only so many dimensions where they existed after all for if there were too many, there wouldn't be any dimensions left to reside in. turning to the source of the noise, they were met by an armoured figure, just as they done with their own home.

The difference was, this new rider was mostly black save for the pink highlights around his body and the giant watch strap going down the front of his chest. the helmet was styled after a watch as well, complete with a pair of clock hands to form the antenna and a small earpiece on the left like a dial. his visor was strange; it wasn't a simple visor, but formed of kanji spelling out 'rider'.

"You're the one from the Creatimension, right?" the rider remarked far too casually for their liking, a small growl escaping them as they gripped the lever on their driver tightly. "Then I suppose I should give you a fair warning; if you were going to escape Build and Game Heart, then you've kind of come to the wrong place!"

"Escape Build? game Heart!? you shouldn't even be aware of them in this dimension!" They called out in response to the rider, who merely gave a small tut as they pulled a strange object from one of the holders around his wrist. with a small twist, the navy and dark purple pocket watch had the front face twisted, revealing the face of a different rider upon the front as the rider pressed the top button twice.

 ** _GAME HEART!_**

 ** _LEVEL UP! TOKUBESTU GASHAT DE HENSHIN SURU CPU RIDER WA... GAME HEART DA!_**

the pocket watch slid onto the left hand side of his belt, a white case surrounding a digital clock display while a black and white watch depicted the rider's own face on the other side. As the navy and purple item connected, the eyes upon it began to flash as an arrow moved from left to right on the display, quickly replaced by numerous ticking clocks flashing between red and blue.

"I'm not like other riders after all... I'm something special, is the best way to put it." the rider remarked as he pressed the button on the top of his belt with a small chuckle, the belt front twisting slightly. his right hadn fell upon the white watch and as soon as his next words were spoken, he gave the whole thing a flick that spun it in a full circle. "Call me Kamen Rider Zi-O. Henshin!"

 ** _RIDER TIME!_**

 ** _KAMEN RIDER! ZI-O!_**

 ** _ARMOUR TIME!_**

 ** _LEVEL UP! GAME HEART!_**

* * *

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	11. 11 - the monster revelation

**Woop woop, let's get this ball rolling! What a final episode fight that was eh? Can't say I like the rabbit-dragon 'best match' though; CGI only and they tacked on the best match sound effect over the trial music. at least they tried to explain it on Bandai's site, but the idea that the build driver felt their connection and declared them a best match is... a reason. Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!  
_

 _Bauen: Who are those fierce fighters that await you in Uraya? ...Oh wait, they're idiots._

 _Lilith: It's time to smash up Lowee! What is sealed away by the Mascot?_

 _Bauen: I don't know which is worse, children or man-children._

 _Lilith: Either way, we'll have to brawl! Kasandra, Ursula, it's time to go all out!_

 _B + L: Rider once more! Don't forget me!_

* * *

"Oh dear, so they misbehaved and attacked you did they? I am truly sorry for what they must've put you through!" Mina sighed as she bowed deeply, Nepgear looking rather awkward as the oracle did so. Even as a CPU Candidate, she didn't really have a rather formal or respectful atmosphere around her. "As their guardian and educator, I must apologise to you on their behalf. Now then, what do you two have to say?"

"Lame! Why do I have to apologise to that CPU dummy!?" Ram huffed, the pink coated girl turning away with arms folded, Rom following her actions to a tee, if with a little less anger than her sister. "I've got nothing to say to this CPU dummy!"

"Yeah, yeah!"

"No, that's not what I want to hear." Mina stated, a small frown appearing upon her face. Bauen could only shake his head. When you had such stubborn children, it was very rare when a subtle scolding actually managed to do the trick. It did little to change the twins' disposition at least.

"Hmph! They were so mean, and they were all like 'we're going to attack you now for no reason, hahaha!'" Well, that was really more what they did, but okay then.

"We lost… it really hurt…"

"What. Do. Good little girls. _Say?_ " an intense aura suddenly began to bear down upon them all, the pressure stifling in the air despite Mina's attempt at a pleasant tone. The blue haired woman herself didn't look all that frightening with her cheerful little smile, but the strained voice and burning eyes… this was an oracle that was far more than first appeared. None of them could suppress the small shiver.

 _ **YABEI!**_

"We're sorry. Really."

"Sorry…"

"Well that was… an experience…" 5pb muttered from behind Bauen, the pop idol curling into herself slightly in the face of the oracle, who had yet to lose her sunny smile. "Such an intense dark aura…"

"I guess there's more than meets the eye with Lowee's oracle as well." IF added with a sigh, a small bead of sweat dropping down her face. "Anyway, we weren't here for an apology. We wanted to actually ask for their assistance."

"Unfortunately, I must vehemently deny your request as their guardian, they are only children you see." Mina replied, putting a finger to her lips in thought. "If they wanted to assist you as fellow CPU candidates however, then I suppose I could make an exception in that regard…"

"Nope! I don't play with CPU dummies!"

"Nuh uh…"

Well, that worked well.

"It doesn't appear as if we're going to get anywhere anymore. We should probably take our leave." Bauen prompted, leading them back towards the entrance of the Lowee Basilicom, Mina giving a quick bow.

"My dearest apology to you all that I couldn't assist anymore." She said, her tone a bit more depressed than it should be. "Be warned however, there are rumours that there has recently been an upturn in crime around Lowee. People are saying it is the start of something completely unprecedented. Please, be careful."

"We will, thank you so much. Maybe we'll see each other again soon." Nepgear answered with a wave, closing the door to the sound of Mina starting up what was most likely going to be a rather impressive tirade against Rom and Ram for their behaviour. The lilac haired girl flinched slightly. she wouldn't like to be the one facing that sort of lecture after feeling Mina's wrath.

None of them deserved that.

* * *

"Well after that, I'm afraid we're no better off than when we started." Bauen remarked as he slowed down the Machine Builder to a gentle cruise around Lowee, looking about for a hotel they could rest at. Compa suddenly perked up behind IF however when she caught sight of something rather strange, pointing off to the side.

"Hey, isn't that Miss underling?" the nurse in training questioned and indeed, the pale skinned girl was looking around cautiously as she moved through the people. Clearly she was attempting to get somewhere unseen, though clearly she wasn't as skilled at stealth as she liked to believe. "Didn't we beat up Miss underling though?"

"We did… but maybe we can use this." Bauen muttered, Nepgear looking at him in confusion. "She searches for the Mascots to destroy them, while we search for the Mascots in order to ask for their power. While we're cruising around with no clue where to go, she seems to have a target destination. Do you get what I'm trying to say?"

"So… if we follow her without her noticing, maybe she could lead us to the Mascot's location!" Nepgear realised, slamming her fist against her palm with a bright smile. "That could work! We would need to get rid of the motorcycles first…"

With the bike gamer dissolving into particles and the Machine Builder returning to its phone form, the group began to sneak their own way into the crowd, stances casual even if their eyes never left the underling's body. At first, it didn't seem as if there was anything to worry about; from the looks of things, she was simply helping out an old grandmother with a heavy load, but when Nepgear drew closer to actually hear what she had to say, the impression changed quickly.

"Maybe I feel weaker because the CPU isn't around…" the grandmother muttered as the underling finished loading up the vegetables onto the table, her stand finally ready for market in half the time it would normally take her. The underling did her best to look surprised, fighting back the grin that came onto her face.

"Whoa, you're still believing in those CPUs? That's your first mistake granny." The underling remarked. "Everyone's worshipping Arfoire nowadays. I mean, all the cool kids are anyway."

"My, is that so? Forgive me, this old grandma struggles to keep up with the times." The old lady lamented, hand to her forehead as the underling nodded knowingly.

"Yeah, you should give it a try sometime. You'll be surprised by how much better you'll feel." The pale skin girl pushed, reaching into the back pocket of her mouse styled coat. "Oh, I have just the thing – a limited edition Arfoire figurine endorsed by ASIC! Just slap this baby somewhere in your house and you'll be the luckiest grandma in Lowee!"

"Well… that statue looks more than a little frightening…"

"I know right? But that's part of its charm! It's meant to scare all of the bad luck that tries to come your way!"

"Is that so? I can't say I really understand, but it certainly looks rather expensive." The grandma muttered, taking the figuring into her hands curiously.

"Oh yeah, it would cost you an arm and a leg, but I'd say it was fate that let us meet. Granny, let me cut you a deal…"

"My apologies ma'am, but you would be better off not making a deal with the devil." Bauen interrupt, bowing in apology as he took the figurine from the elderly woman. Before the underling could even begin spluttering an accusation, Bauen lifted the item high, smacking it down onto his knee so it smashed into a million pieces right before their eyes. "Keep hold of your faith in the CPU. Lady White Heart truly does appreciate your belief in her."

"Now you're scamming the poor elderly?" Nepgear exclaimed as she followed behind, the underling smacking a hand to her forehead at the sight. "How could ASIC stoop so low!?"

"You lot again? Give me a break!" the underling muttered in reply, a vein appearing upon her forehead as she tried fruitlessly to pick up the smashed remains of her special figurine. "Gathering funds for ASIC operations is a super important job! Urgh damn it, and just when I was about to close the deal too… Screw you lot!"

"And she's off like lightning." Compa remarked as they watched the green haired girl run off as if her life depended on it, Bauen waving farewell to the elderly woman once she realised just what she was about to fall victim to. "We should keep tailing her!"

Except it didn't really seem as if she was anywhere close to finding the Mascot. First it had been some children, almost heading to the ASIC headquarters under the promise of receiving an incredibly modified Arfoire chip that could let the user modify their save data however they wanted, and then it was a goddamn cat of all things, the underling passing it some food so it would follow her.

"I don't think she's heading to the Mascot." Compa pointed out after they watched the underling take a small rest under a tree, 5pb nodding in agreement. "Does she know where the Mascot is?"

"I never really expected this plan to go perfectly from the start anyway. Maybe we should think up a new strategy." If muttered, closing her eyes as she began going through several different thoughts out loud. Nepgear would've joined in, only she had something far more pressing to take care of.

"Um, I'm just going to take my time for a bit." She called out, Bauen nodding absentmindedly as he listened to IF.

"Make sure not to get lost, okay?" the elderly man called out in response, Nepgear giving a nod as she tried to find a place to properly deal with her little issue. At first, it didn't seem like that much of an issue, but the longer they talked, the more the rider grew to become concerned. No person could rightly spend such an exorbitant amount of time simply going to the toilet did they? Seeing as the plans were going nowhere, the elderly man excused himself, rushing over to where he remembered the services being to find rather odd sight.

No doubt Nepgear was doing something to help Rom, the small blue coated girl hesitantly wandering about the place trying to search for something, but the Planeptune CPU Candidate on her knees with her head stuck in a bush, her butt sticking up into the air as she rummaged about in the foliage was more than a little strange to see. The fact that they were in a fairly populated area as well meant that more than a couple people passing were giving her spare glances, whispers upon their lips as they tried to move on as fast as possible.

"For goodness sake… Nepgear, what are you doing?" Bauen questioned, said girl starting which meant that, because she was in a bush, she ended up coming out with frizzled hair covered in small branches and leaves. Trying her best to ignore the embarrassment that came with Rom's little giggles, Nepgear hurriedly cleaned herself up with a blush.

"Oh, Bauen! I came across Rom you see and she's lost her pen, she said it was important to her, so we were searching around here to see if we could find it." Nepgear answered, Rom giving a silent nod behind her. So, nothing too serious then, but it was nice to see that at least one of the white Sisters were willing to get along with them. "Do you think you could help us? It has to be around here somewhere…"

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt. What does it look like then?" the man responded, Rom hesitantly poking her fingers together as she described the colour and design. It was rather cute; Rom and Ram had been gifted with a matching set by Lady White Heart and the thought of her losing it nearly had Rom in tears. He would've been a monster to ignore something like that.

A few minutes of foraging about didn't seem to come up with any results though, the entire area near to where Rom had been kidnapped coming up empty of any stationary. It was as they were searching however when Rom hesitantly began to pull on the back of their clothes, struggling to meet their eyes when they turned to her.

"Um… Miss? Mr?" the little brunette spoke, Nepgear looking a bit taken aback.

"Oh, me? Miss? How flattering and mature for someone my age…" the girl muttered with a small smile, shaking her head. "Please, just call me Nepgear."

"And I, Bauen. The last time I was called Mr by a child was far too long ago." Bauen mused, watching the grin come slightly onto Rom. "Now then, what ails you child?"

"Miss Nepgear… Mr Bauen… do you know my big sister?"

"Blanc? Yes, but we didn't talk a lot or anything. She seemed really smart, with an air of mystery so…" Nepgear recalled with a finger to her cheek. Bauen hadn't seen her in person save for the images and videos, but it was hard to speak of her and not know of her serious disposition. She preferred to let her skill and actions do the talking rather than any excessive boasting.

"She never came home… where is she?" the question cut through their thoughts like a sword, the two sharing an uneasy glance between themselves as Rom looked up to them expectantly. The first signs of tears in her eyes were already present as well.

"Um, well, Blanc is still stuck in the Gamindustri graveyard with all of the other CPUs, so…" Nepgear hesitantly answered, losing all of her composure when all of a sudden Rom started to cry harder, the lilac haired girl falling to her knees to try and comfort her. "Umm, er, please don't cry. I'm sure she's doing just fine! We're doing our best to save her. I mean, I failed back then… but I promise to save her next time! So there's no need to cry, okay?"

"Nepgear… you look near tears yourself." Bauen muttered with a face palm before gently moving the purple CPU Candidate back so he could rest a withered hand on the little girl's shoulder, Rom looking up slightly before she felt herself being drawn into a hug by the old man. "Rom, you miss your sister very much, right?"

"Uh huh…"

"That's good. Because she misses you too, she misses you so much that she's trying her best to fight her way out of the Gamindustri Graveyard, just to see you and Ram again." Bauen whispered, drawing a circle upon the quietening girl's back. "But she needs just a bit more time. She's fighting her hardest to come back, but she can't do it just yet. When she does come back, what do you think she wants to see, a Rom covered in tears or a Rom happily welcoming her back home?"

"Happy…"

"Right. So I want you to dry those tears, okay? Save those tears for another time, and do your best to smile. Your sister could come back at any time now, so you need to be smiling all the time so she can see it when she comes home. Can you smile for me now?" and she did. It was little, but it was there and with time, it would grow into something beautiful. "There we go, wonderful. Now, let's see if there's anywhere else we can find your pen. How about… we try where she was kidnapped to? I'll call the others so they know we're safe and you can start taking Rom there."

"Th-thank you!" Rom cried out in glee (or at least, what was probably the equivalent of crying out for the quiet girl) as she clutched her pen closely to her chest, Bauen helping her off the Machine Builder as the pulled up to Lowee. Rushing off most likely to meet with her sister, Bauen let the bike fold back up to its phone mode as they walked off to the group once more, IF tapping her foot in irritation.

"Well good to see you two back. How did things go with CPU Candidate number 1?" the agent remarked as they approached, Nepgear giving a chuckle as she poked her fingers together.

"I'm sorry about running off like that… but we managed to get Rom her special pen back She even thanked us, so hopefully she thinks of us more as a friend now!" Nepgear answered with a smile, IF left to do nothing but sigh at the girl. "So, has anything happened here?"

"We managed to overhear Miss underling on her cellular telephone!" Compa excitedly explained. "She was mentioning all sorts of nifty keywords like 'block dungeon' and 'Mascot'! Miss underling was super loud when she was speaking too, it was like we were meant to overhear it!"

"Something tells me that isn't something to be so proud of." Bauen muttered incredulously, giving a tired shrug. "Unfortunately, it may be our only lead for this case. I'm assuming then that the plan is to intercept this dungeon before the underling can get there?"

"Naturally. She's already moved though, meaning that we're going to have to do a bit of catching up thanks to Gear's helping people thing." IF commented, a blush immediately appearing on the CPU Candidate's face. "Come on Gear, you know I'm just messing with you. Now let's get a move on!"

* * *

 _ **BAKUSOU BIKE!**_

 _ **GASHAT!**_

 _ **BUILD CHANGE!**_

The lead led them towards the World Labyrinth, a strange and trippy Technicolor area filled almost entirely with blocks of all sorts of shades. Even some of the enemies were styled in the same way, several tetsri trying to stop them on their path. Not that they were any sort of challenge though, only being minor annoyances compared to the odd layout of the dungeon that had managed to get them all confused several times. Eventually however, between the mountains of blocks and winding corridors (or at least, as windy as you could get when forced to use cubes), 5pb was the first to catch sight of the little disc glowing white, the group charging over triumphantly.

"Who goes there?" the white Mascot called out in suspicion, voice low as it did so.

"Excuse me, but we would like to ask for your aid. Could you please help us?" Nepgear said, the Disc pausing before it floated up to face Nepgear directly in the eyes, the girl reeling back slightly at the sudden movement.

"Is that you Neptune? No, no… you resemble her, but your aura is unmistakably different…" the Mascot muttered, whirling around Nepgear to continue with her analysis.

"You know my sister?"

"Your sister? I see, that does make sense… You're her younger sister… I know Neptune very well. She was the one who ordered me to remain here." The Mascot explained, IF raising an eyebrow in confusion.

"But that doesn't make any sense. Why would the CPU of Planeptune be giving orders to Lowee's Mascot?" the brunette questioned. The answer they would receive in return wasn't what they were expecting at all.

"Lowee doesn't have a Mascot. ASIC made sure of that." The Disc declared, its glow dying down slightly as it continued. "I was originally one of Planeptune's Mascots until I came to Lowee on Neptune's behest. She asked that I ensure prosperity for Lowee, a land that had lost all of their Mascots. That said, I am unable to help you. That would go against the orders your sister gave me. Or do you wish to ignore your sister's commands and force me to come along with you?"

"T-that's… well… Neptune's being held captive so… um… Well, I mean, we should…" Nepgear fumbled, sweating like mad under the calm assault from the loaned Mascot.

"My apologies, my words were harsh. But that is not the only reason why I cannot assist you. The oracle of Lowee has given me a very important mission and I will not abandon my duties no matter what." The Mascot concluded.

"The Oracle mentioned something like that… what is this mission of yours?" 5pb questioned in return, only to be interrupted by the explosions that rocked the whole of the World Labyrinth, heralding the arrival of the underling with a vicious smirk.

"Well, lookie here. The whole group's here for the fun~!" the underling jokingly sung, IF rolling her eyes as she stepped forward. "Now that you're all here and proved that there aren't any traps, the Mascot is mine for the taking!"

"You say that as if we're not going to beat you down again as we've done every. Single. Time before." IF spat back, drawing her weapons as the underling gave a chuckle.

"Well why do you think I was so late getting here?" she snarked in return, throwing her hands out wide. "I made sure to get a little more help this time!"

And all of a sudden, the large explosions began to make sense. This wasn't just a collection of guardian robots like it was last time, not by a long shot. Bauen couldn't believe his eyes; they spread out as fast the eye could see, a sea of gun metal grey marching in time and with their weapons all pointed towards them. If they didn't act soon, they would be buried in more bullets than even an army could handle.

"Damn it, we need to stop them before any of them can get to the Mascot!" IF growled, the first traces of fire and lightning coiling around her weapons as Nepgear, 5pb and Compa nodded, the CPU Candidate transforming to her HDD while guitar and syringe were drawn.

"Damn it, going to need something fast, something strong… something that can deal with a huge amount of enemies at once…" Bauen muttered, pulling out a pair of bottles and furiously shaking them before slamming them down into his driver. "This is going to be a wild ride, if it doesn't break down on me."

 _ **DRAGON!**_

 _ **USB MEMORY!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!" a blur of blue and green slammed down onto the man's body, burning fire and rushing electricity rushing out to spread between the endless hordes of robots. When one was met with an electrocution death, the rest were soon to follow as the lightning chained from to the other, Bauen flaring out his right hand to shoot out a burning stream that melted a good chunk of the robots where they stood. With one eye formed of a dragon's head and the other, part of a USB, the man didn't cut a particularly scary figure, but when the scales that lined his right arm sliced through whatever obstacles they came across, the giant USB on his left arm bashing into a guardian to send a deadly amount of electricity through its body before it was tossed off, Bauen was more than capable of dealing with the numbers.

IF was right next to him, her own weapons carving through the relentless horde no matter how many wounds appeared on her body slicing through her coat; anyone who even dared to touch soon found themselves with a few less limbs to work with. Their oil was starting to stain her face, backing up when a trio of them tried to stab her with their bayonets, only to find their weapons thrown from their hands so the guild agent could empty their magazines into their own faces.

5pb and Compa were back to back, letting loose with blasts from guitar and syringe as they tried to break down as many of the robots as possible, but the sheer number present meant they could only last so long. Looking to all sides, every inch of her view covered with metal, there was only one thing 5pb could hope to do.

"DoReMiFa DJ won't be enough for this…" 5pb muttered, bringing up her Gashat gear dual with a look of hesitation, swerving around a sword only to be shot in the back by one of the Guardian's allies. That was what made her mind up, the girl lifting up the Gashat to her face with only a small tremble to her fingers. "Let's hope this works this time…!"

 _ **TOKIMEKI DANCING!**_

 _ **MOVE, GROOVE AND FEEL THE LOVE!**_

 _ **MOVE, GROOVE AND FEEL THE LOVE!**_

"Fiftieth stage! Henshin!"

 _ **DUAL UP!**_

 _ **LOVESTRUCK GIRL OUT ON THE FLOOR! TOKIMEKI DANCING!**_

The new armour that formed over 5pb was fairly similar in design to her DoReMiFa DJ gamer form, the long azure hair changing to become pink while the metallic black dress was exchanged for one of glittering gold, decorated with musical notes. as soon as it attached itself to Lyrica's person however, the girl let out a scream as she fell to her knees, electricity coursing around her as Compa and IF did their best to fight back the hordes that would attack her while she was down.

"5pb! What's happened to her!?" Nepgear asked, the purple sister flying down to her side as her blade sliced through several robots, panting slightly; the amount of energy she had to expend until this point was far more than usual thanks to the copious amounts of enemies they were having to face. "With so many robots, we can't afford to lose anyone!"

"She's attempting to use more energy than she should be able to…" Bauen muttered, throwing his hands forth to let loose with a lightning bolt upon the group gathered before him, watching the writhing girl as she slowly picked herself up, her breaths like growls as a number built up around 5pb. "Well then Lyrica, why don't you show me just what you're capable of?"

"I have to do this…! If I'm going to save… Game Heart!" Lyrica whispered to herself, the rider breathing deeply as she looked around at the carnage surrounding her. Compa and IF were putting up a strong fight, Purple Sister soaring around in a circle driving off any that sought to get too close. Kamen rider Tune's arm reached into the air slowly, the underling watching from her position as the blue haired rider brought her fingers together, a single snap being all that was needed to bring utter darkness to the whole area.

You could hear the confusion that came from the Guardians, their sensory systems not designed for use in absolute darkness. IF was the first to yelp, followed by Compa as movement was done between the confused beeps and other technological noises from the robots before another snap revealed the entire terrain of the World Labyrinth had morphed while the lights were down.

 _ **STAGE SELECT!**_

"Welcome to the club… the club where none of you are invited!" Kamen rider Tune declared, leaping down to the ground in order to send a huge wave of energy across the floor, squares lighting up in all sorts of different colours like a dance club, the black walls highlighted with lights pulsing to a gentle beat blocking any of the guardians from moving away from their incredibly cramped trap. On a balcony above all of the chaos, Kamen rider Build looked to the slightly disoriented hero group by his side; this was nothing like what he had expected to witness now.

Especially when 5pb started to sensually move across the floor, small waves of light emanating from where she stepped as she approached the robot horde slowly. None of their weapons seemed to work and even physically lashing out at the armoured rider did little as she danced her way through the crowd, sliding and skipping between the enemies until she reached the underling stuck in the middle, who could only gasp in confusion as 5pb took her hand.

"What the hell is this!? Is this meant to be some sort of distraction?" the underling cried as she was forced into some sort of tango, 5pb giggling slightly as she brought the underling close for a second.

"Tokimeki Dancing is a game where the main goal is to pick up girls with your dancing skills. I wasn't able to handle the power needed to transform such a large area before, but if I'm going to face someone who works with the same group that's been trying to get rid of Lord Game Heart, I'll use whatever I can!" Lyrica explained, sending the underling into a spin that had her tumbling into the larger crowd, pulling out her Gashat hear dual from her slide slot so she could spin the dial on the front back and forth, slamming it into its holder with all of the grace of the professional idol she was.

 _ **KIMEWAZA!**_

 _ **DUAL GASHAT!**_

 _ **TOKIMEKI CRITICAL FEVER!**_

None of the hero group knew how to react when the explosions started to ring through the enclosed area, the Guardians being destroyed by the tens in a single blow as 5pb continued to dance, Nepgear backing away with a yelp when one of the explosions came a little too close to their balcony for her liking. As they grew in intensity, white light filled their vision until all of sudden, they all landed with a grunt back in the World Labyrinth, 5pb pulling her finishing pose as the broken remains of each and every one of the robots fell down to the ground, the underling nearly buried in a pile of gears and scrap metal.

 _ **GROOVY!**_

"What the he- what the actual hell was that!?" the underling moaned, digging her way out of the pile that had built upon her person as 5pb reset her Gashat, removing the armour so the idol could fall into Compa's waiting arms so the nurse in training could look over her body. "Well, not like any of that stuff matters now, they were never going to get the job done. A thousand zeroes still makes zero."

"Those are pretty damning words for someone who relies on them so much." IF commented with a scoff, the underling turning away slightly with the first hunts of a blush as she growled softly, her words nearly inaudible.

"Well it's not like ASIC is willing to give me anything else." Ah, the perks of being in a grunt position doing nothing but minor labour. Absolutely none. "But enough of that! You idiots still weren't able to save the Mascot from being destroyed, were you?"

The sudden statement had them all turning behind them, only for Nepgear to walk over and slowly pick up the shattered pieces of a disc with a look of dismay upon her face.

"I can't feel anything… the Mascot's completely gone!"

"Do you realise what you've done!? We aren't letting you get away this time!" IF called out, only to falter slightly when the underling showed little reaction to her threat, planting her weapon into the ground and leaning on it without a single care in the world.

"Do you really think you should be wasting your time on me?" the underling mused with a chuckle. "With the Mascot gone, it's going to be released…"

"What is?" Compa questioned, only for the light groaning behind her to cause the whole hero group to whirl around, Bauen letting out a cry of alarm. The monster that appeared behind them looked like nothing you could find around Gamindustri, a yellow cube replacing the biped's head with strange looking, almost mechanical mass connecting it to a spiked edged collar that spread out like a sliced open cube, odd weapons attached to blue arms and several other cubes of yellow dotted around the creatures body.

"Meet the creature the Mascot was meant to keep sealed in an entirely different dimension!" the underling cackled, watching the creature fumble about trying to get its bearings. Without any eyes, ears, nose or mouth to speak of, it should really have no idea where it was going, but as soon as it turned towards Bauen, it let out an inhuman scream, waving its weapon about wildly. "You could say it's an experiment gone wrong, its name is-!"

"A smash. The Fang smash if I recall correctly." Bauen muttered, his fist tightening as the underling looked at him in confusion and annoyance. "I had thought that when there were monsters with traces of Nebula gas within them that it was the extent of the after effects. To know that a smash of all things had managed to remain even if it was sealed in a different realm… we need to defeat it immediately!"

"Well, so you know what it is. No big deal – when we have a whole army of these things on our side, then ASIC will become invincible!" the underling boasted, pointing her hand towards the group with a mild cackle. "Go then smash! Destroy them!"

That was the cue for the monster to launch forward, Bauen being the first to tackle it head on with Nepgear flying to his side to distract the smash's weapon attached to its right arm. A solid swing had the two of them off balance, leaving them open for when the smash… well, smashed into them to force them back into the group, Bauen pulling the mismatched bottles out of the driver with a grunt.

"Yes, they never were all that easy to deal with." The man muttered, pulling out the Gear-Hunter Sparkling can with a few good shakes, pulling the tab on the top to release the connectors. "Time to build up!"

 _ **GEAR-HUNTER SPARKLING!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

 _ **SHUWA TO HAJIKERU! GEAR-HUNTER SPARKLING! YEAH-YEAH!**_

The bubble that formed from Bauen's transformation had the smash backtracking, Nepgear's fast swordplay keeping it occupied so the man could leap high into the air, a brief moment spent aiming as gears formed around his foot so that when the rider shot forward, they ground into the smash's flesh, sending sparks around the area.

 _ **DRILLCRUSHER!**_

With Nepgear keeping the fang smash in a deadlock, Bauen was free to slam his own weapon into the beast's stomach, sending the motor into overdrive as he shook a third bottle, popping the cap with a small flick before shoving it into the receptor on the back of the drillcrusher.

 _ **UNICORN!**_

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX BREAK!**_

The drill of the weapon slowly began to gain a light cyan ethereal glow to it, Nepgear pushing forward harder as the pair shoved back the fang smash, the beast groaning the whole way as it slammed into the back walls of the World Labyrinth, Bauen cranking the lever on the Build driver as they moved.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **SPARKLING FINISH!**_

An explosion rang out as Nepgear put all she had into her own attack, the two energies mixing into a rather potent combination that sent a sonic boom through the air, the underling looking on in amazement as the smash she had put so much effort into releasing lay writhing on the floor, unable to do much more than moan. Tiredly, Bauen pulled an empty bottle from one of the slots on his bandolier, holding it out towards the creature so it could suck in the power, revealing the surprise held beneath the skin.

"Is that… a person!?" IF questioned as the last of the blue and yellow particles entered the bottle, morphing it into the fattened form as a young redheaded girl was left blissfully unconscious on the ground. Rushing over, Compa was quick to take her onto her back, the underling scowling as she stomped her foot in frustration.

"Damn it, why can't you let me win once!? Why can't you just be fair!?" the underling cursed, running away through the Labyrinth with a cry of frustration audible even when the group remained in their original position. "How can this day get any – where am I!? Don't tell me I'm lost!?"

"Well, that was that. To think that was what the Mascot had been defending…" Bauen muttered, clenching the bottle tighter as Compa carefully stood up, the group reconvening as both Nepgear and Bauen removed their transformations. "It makes sense considering the Mascot came from Planeptune… but if this was possible, who knows what else could still be lurking?"

"Bauen? I think we need a bit of an explanation here." IF interrupted the man's musing, her arms folded in annoyance. "After all, you seemed to know a bit about the smash thing, didn't you?"

"Let's get back to the oracle. I'll explain more there."

 **And that's it for now. With the final episode of Build, it's now time for Zi-o to take the center stage, but that doesn't mean this story is going to be shoved to the way-side! Please, stay tuned and look forward to the next chapter!**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_

The Jikan Time-nsion awaits.


	12. 12 - the Smash beatdown

**Welcome back to Creatimension! We're going to wrap things up in Lowee for now so we can move on to Lastation, meaning it's time for a battle! I feel as if I wrote Bauen a little bit differently this time: I said before that I see Bauen as the War Doctor physically, but I feel as if I've also written him more Doctor-like as well in this chapter. Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: A dimension where one can borrow the power of legendary heroes... Your enemies must be terrible if you've managed to end up in this state._

 _Chrom: there's no time to worry, the Smash might be getting out of hand! So, they're all human inside?Frightening, for certain..._

 _Bauen: There's no time for regrets however, there are people in danger! Build up!_

 _Chrom: Right, we need to stop innocents from being hurt! It's rider time!_

 _B + C: Rider once more! Now, it's time!_

* * *

"When one discovers a power source, it is only natural for the following procedure to be testing how it may be utilised and to what extent its powers can reach." Bauen remarked, a grimace upon his face as they walked ever so slowly towards the Basilicom, the snow falling upon the old man's outstretched hand. "Combine that with combat oriented minds, and you can easily tell how such a thing can result in foul dealings. Whereas my group and I focused on using it to power PDWs – personal defence weapons that might've been used on a smaller scale, others were more critical of my research. 'The possibilities are endless when you take into account how much power this box is producing, we could use this to outrun any nation ever!' they claimed. Even worse, they claimed that the power the box held could even be used to invade and conquer the other Landmasses."

"They were mostly the soldiers who were present on the expedition; it's only natural that the army would feature people that thought with a more militant approach. This time however, they had the scientists who were willing to do the research, people who were willing to construct such potentially wicked weapons." The rider continued as they passed through the main government building's doors. His voice lowered as far as possible, barely even coming out as a whisper. "They were obviously denied, for even private it would be terrible if it got out that the government were permitting a plan that would allow them to invade other landmasses. That didn't stop them from establishing themselves individually, taking the smallest samples they had with them and replicating what the box could do. They could only go so far however… and they managed to steal the box. Through the inhumane experiments they conducted, the Smash were created thanks to finally having direct access to the box. But, that's enough for now, I see the oracle."

"I see, so the Mascot has finally completed its mission, a mission that was never meant to be completed…" Mina mourned, a sorrowful expression immediately appearing upon her face as soon as she heard of the Mascot's demise. Borrowed it may have been, but that didn't mean the blue haired Oracle felt nothing for the one so zealously working on its task. "Then that means you must've seen the remnants of Faust's technology. I apologise… that must've brought up some terrible memories."

"Faust? Is that the name of the group who formed after you found the box?" Nepgear questioned, Bauen giving a tight nod in reply.

"I thought that we managed to destroy everything that existed of them since that day… turns out, I was woefully incorrect."

"Then I suppose this news will be even worse to you… for there are hundreds of similar creatures sealed away all over Lowee." The oracle's statement brought a cold chill down their spines, but the group witnessed first-hand how there were none there who reacted just as badly as Bauen did. Rushing forth, Mina let out a small cry as the elderly scientist grabbed a hold of her collar, eyes widened in alarm as he spoke in a dangerous tone.

"There's hundreds of them still left in existence!? And all you did was seal them rather than help them!?" the man growled out, shaking Mina uncontrollably. "You fool, you utter fool! Those were innocent people and now you've forced them to suffer being a monster ever since I've been in the Gamindustri Graveyard!?"

"We had no way of dealing with them once you had gone…! No one was able to break into your notes or locks…" the oracle weakly explained, Bauen briefly pausing in his manhandling to throw away the woman with a sigh. It was true, he had put on plenty of locks, passwords and whatever he could imagine in order to keep his research secret. Of course they wouldn't have been able to use it or even get close to unlocking it. "Fortunately, ASIC is not one to take drastic action. We may still have some time before they start to move, even with the seal produced by the Mascot broken. It may be a selfish request, but may I ask for your aid in protecting the city and the people who live there?"

"Damn it, why can't it ever be as easy as just blowing every one of them up…?" IF muttered, punching her palm. "If there are innocent people inside them, then we have to use your method to stop them from being destroyed, right?"

"Yes. Should they find their monstrous forms destroyed, then their human host will perish as well." Bauen confirmed, fingering the bottles attached to his bandolier with a sour face. "but with the Mascot unable to lend us its sealing capabilities, our team are the only ones truly capable of defeating the monsters and I doubt we would be able to survive if hundreds of them are awakening… damn it, how did Faust even get the people to do this!? No, focus… we need to find Rare metal and datanium, then we can maybe reconstruct the vessel for the Mascot. IF, Compa, 5pb, while you go and find the materials, Nepgear and I'll try to construct as many bottles as possible. Can you handle that?"

"Understood! We'll get them in no time!" 5pb promised, pumping her fist into the air, joined quickly by Compa while IF merely settled for rolling her eyes. With them running off into the distance, the Guild agent amongst them rapidly typing away on her phones in order to gather some intel as to where the best farming locations were, Bauen rolled his neck.

"Nepgear, we're going to have to work fast. Can I trust you to follow my every order?"

"R-right! I'll do my best! I'm pretty good with machinery after all!"

* * *

Nepgear would soon learn that it wasn't as easy as it first appeared. While the basic structure of the bottle was simple enough to comprehend as well as how it was _meant_ to function, but the sheer schematics Bauen brought up were almost impossible to understand. Yet Bauen didn't even flinch as he dove straight into the construction process, using easily found materials in shops in order to form things that Nepgear frankly didn't even know were possible.

The fact that this was then shoved into such a compact little form was even worse. While Nepgear, perhaps, with enough time could hope to reproduce the main architecture of the fullbottle system, it would have to be far bulkier and heavier in order to even come close to having the same effect as Bauen's bottles. It was a clear reminder that even though he was a rider and a skilled fighter, he was still a scientist at heart.

She did manage to make a few given enough time, but they were hardly as many as the rapid production line the scientist seemed to have. What he must've been able to create in a proper lad must've been miraculous.

"Finally, I'm done!" Nepgear cried out in relief once she made ten bottles, falling back on her chair limply while Bauen finally paused in his creation of the bottles. The amount of the items beside him was far greater with about the same amount of effort, but it still didn't seem enough if they were going to be facing a horde that numbered in the hundreds.

"Considering the amount of time we've spent on this, the other bottles should've already managed to form a proper identity. Considering the relative simplicity of the materials needed in order to repair the Mascot, the others have bound to have made some progress…" Bauen added, a small beeping from his back pocket causing him to pull out the Build phone, the one message displayed upon it clear enough in its message. "Damn it, there's been signs of other smash awakening! We need to get out there as fast as we can, move!"

 _ **BUILD CHANGE!**_

The two were immediately heading out towards the warning signal, Nepgear forcing her eyes shut as the bike began to reach speeds it really shouldn't have been able to had it not been for the F1 fullbottle, newly created, inserted into the back that was enough to force flames out of the exhausts. They would be going back to a place relatively close to where they had originally lost the Mascot, for there appeared to be a gathering of the monsters; apparently, the others were already starting to make their ways over there.

The first warnings came when they started to hear a growing amount of noise, the sound eventually starting to drown out even the roars of the engine. Bauen didn't even think about stopping for a moment however; instead, the bike began to gain even further in speed as Nepgear clamped on tighter around the old man's waist, trying to suppress the scream that threatened to escape her throat. When they eventually slid to a stop, Nepgear wouldn't be able to believe her eyes when they opened.

"Codename: Needle, Fang, Strong, Burn, Flight, Mirage, Square, Press… I can barely even see the end of them." Bauen breathed. The only reason he was able to come up with those names was because the other three, IF, Compa and 5pb, were locked in the middle of the battle, sweating profusely as they tried to hold off the horde. "They can't use their strongest attacks because they can't hurt the human inside. That means we have to deal with this! Nepgear, take these bottles!"

"Right!" two yellow bottles ended up falling into the CPU Candidate of Planeptune's hands, Nepgear already coming off the bike with a Build driver wrapped around her waist, Bauen following with his own as he slammed it on and let the belt part wrap around him. His bottles were instead coloured red and cyan, the shaking of them causing several equations to pass through his mind, especially related to aeronautics.

 _ **ROSE!**_

 _ **HELICOPTER!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **KING!**_

 _ **LOCK!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **JOUNETSU NO SENPUUKI! ROSE-COPTER! YEAH!**_

 _ **PRINCESS!**_

The rose half body was met with a cyan equivalent that had a helicopter for an eye, the front majority of a helicopter also forming the cyan aspect of the chest plate and the left shoulder pad. As Bauen threw his hand back, he caught hold of the propeller rotating slowly upon his back, a single swing sending the large weapon spinning through the hordes in order to carve away at some of the monsters, drawing their attention away from the trio within.

Nepgear meanwhile was going through a completely different transformation as after a blink, lilac eyes turned blue and the hair flowing behind her grew out even more, streaks of blonde growing until it was the primary colour. A pink frilly dress worthy of a princess replaced her sailor uniform, adorned by gold buttons going down the middle of the chest, beneath a folded magenta ribbon that has a flower ornament on it. White, flower-shaped sleeves were held by raspberry ribbon that wrapped behind the neck to match the large ribbon sewn to the middle of the waist, a gold sphere added and a skirt resembling a pair of large, flowing tails lined in white and shaped to reveal a light pink flower-shaped miniskirt to finish the look. Dusting off the dress with gloved hands, Nepgear lashed out, a white boot smashing into one of the Smashes' face.

"And there's more of you. And here I thought it would be difficult getting you all together." Came a cocky voice, the pair turning to where the underling was brandishing her weapon with a grin. "I mean, sure you can handle one of these guys, but this many? You'd have to be real idiotic in order to try and handle all of these. Guys, get them!"

IF stepped forward to fend off the cube headed Smashed that moved first, locking her swords against the monster's bulky arms and pushing it back with a growl. Compa tried her best to shoot down as many of the monsters surrounding as fast as she could, a splash of acid in the face of a flying creature sending it down to the ground so it could be more easily dealt with by Nepgear. It meant the nurse in training didn't notice the spiked Smash that headed behind her, only for Compa to turn when the brief blast of noise came from behind, 5pb giving a small wink as the monster tumbled along the ground.

"Whoa, I'm not used to fighting in a dress…" Nepgear remarked as she leapt over one of the Smash, gloved hands coming together to slam downward on the grey creature only to take those hands and push down upon the dress' lower half when it threatened to come up to high as she landed. A barrage of punches in front of her gave form to a flying storm of petals, the grey Smash falling to the ground with a thump. The only issue was that it didn't stay on the ground, coming back up to its feet as if it had been barely tickled. "Goodness, and these Smash aren't being defeated…"

"You'll have to control your power perfectly… the Build driver, using typical fullbottles, has had their powers regulated in order to have the correct frequency when pushed to max." Bauen explained, throwing up the propeller weapon so he could crank the lever of the Build driver.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

The cyan propeller rested just above Build's hand, gaining momentum before tremendous winds began to whip around the rider. With a yell, Bauen threw the spinning weapon forth, gathering a few of the creatures into a tornado that sent them all flying away, sparks flying as they smashed into a little bit of everything and anything. Before Bauen could approach them with bottles at the ready though, even more Smash replaced their ranks, crowding around the rider before he could even take a step towards them.

"Bad monsters! Stay down!"

"Bad…!"

Two streaks of light from the sky however sent the monsters all reeling back, the glow fading away to reveal the two CPU Candidates of Lowee wielding their staffs with determined glints to their eye. It shouldn't have been possible; if Bauen had managed to receive the signal of warning, then Mina was incredibly likely to have done so as well, yet she was willing to let the two twins come?

"Hey, don't just stand there old guy! We need to beat all of these freaks up, right?" Ram stated with a grin, the pink haired of the White Sisters sending out a blast that disoriented an orange Smash. "These things are nothing compared to these CPU Candidates, right Rom?"

"Right!" despite her quiet attitude, the second of the sisters was just as ruthless as her sibling, shards of ice launching out to stick into the Smash, an inhumane sound of pain escaping them as they tried to swarm around them once more.

"Right then, focus on trying to divert the attention of the Smash! I'll take the materials and see if I can reconstruct the Mascot's vessel. Then we can get this all dealt with for good." Bauen declared, passing IF as the brunette threw him the disc shards, Compa happily tossing a chunk of metal in his direction while 5pb held the datanium in one hand, the other nearly throwing her gashat gear dual before the idol realised last minute and embarrassedly swapped hands.

 ** _DOREMIFA DJ!_**

 ** _SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON, LET'S JAM!_**

 ** _SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON LET'S JAM!_**

"Fiftieth stage!"

 ** _DUAL UP!_**

 ** _HEY-HEY-HEY! DOREMIFA DJ!_**

And there was chaos. Whether it be music notes flying around to explode upon the Smash, Compa having to dart around flames as one of the monsters tried to roast her alive or flower petals dancing around with every strike the transformed Nepgear performed, it was manic upon the battlefield. In between all of this however, Bauen was deftly messing about with the pieces of the Mascot in his hand, swapping out bottles and spinning his driver's lever almost constantly in order to have the tools he needed.

 _ **F1!**_

 _ **PHOENIX!**_

 _ **KUJIRA!**_

 _ **SENPUUKI!**_

Ducking beneath the needles that managed to go around the shield produced by Ron, Bauen gave a burst of flame to the connected pieces, melding them under the intense pressure of a phoenix's fire before cooling them down under a whale's water and a fan's winds. It also had the additional effect of dousing the fire spouting Smash, blowing away another while the water made one pause. This left the Smash exposed to the electricity of IF's quatars, the Gashacon shouter swinging to strike the next in the hands of Kamen rider Tune while Nepgear kicked the head of the final.

"Come on, it's time for you to return…"

"…Where… am I?"

"Perfect, you're awake!" Build exclaimed as the disc regained the white lustre it had when the Mascot inhabited it, floating up of its own accord above Bauen's hands "The Smash you were sealing have been released. Trying our best to deal with them, but their numbers are far greater than we expected."

"Ah, I see, so I failed in my job after all…" the Mascot lamented, it's glow becoming stronger than ever. "Then I shall seal them away once more. Please, give me a moment!"

"Actually, there's a new plan in place now. I need you to use that power and make them immobile, but don't seal them away!" Bauen rushed to say before the Mascot could complete its actions, the light dimming slightly from the disc. "I have a way to deal with them permanently, not just sealing them away so they can wake up again. Please, trust me on that."

"… It's possible for me to do that. You went to the effort to have me revived, it's the least I can do." The Mascot conceded, the glow building up once more until a wave of white light washed over every monster. Compa opened her eyes from where she was cowering to look at the fist that froze halfway to her face, the monster clearly struggling, yet unable to move a single muscle beyond a millimetre, just as every over Smash present.

"Wha, the Mascot!? How, I destroyed it! It should be dead!" the underling growled out, throwing her weapon to the ground in frustration, Bauen tutting.

"The difference is, where you might destroy, I fix. I am Kamen rider Build; Build, as in to create or construct. When you decided to be a destructive force, you made the worst enemy you could ever hope to face." Baune declared, a smirk upon his face hidden by his helmet. "The laws of victory have been decided."

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **TANK!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Build up."

 _ **HAGANE NO MOONSAULT! RABBIT-TANK!**_

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

"Finish this!" Bauen called out as the asymptote formed beneath him as he leapt upwards, coursing blue energy gathering upon the tank rolling shoes, knocking over three of the creatures in a domino line of explosions.

 _ **KIMEWAZA!**_

 _ **DUAL GASHAT!**_

 _ **DOREMIFA CRITICAL BEAT!**_

"Let's do this!" 5pb declared as a turntable formed in front of her, the golden boom boxes appearing beside her in a much greater size as she started to scratch the records spinning before her. Each beat of the boom boxes were enough to send the Smash to their knees, the sound eventually causing them to be left unconscious on the ground.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

"Precure! Floral Tourbillion!" a huge storm of flowers was compressed between Nepgear's fingers, the girl drawing them close to her chest before thrusting her hands forward. The barrage of petals washed over the Smash, not so much damaging them as it did put them into a blissful state, falling to the ground without a care in the world. That left Bauen ample time to rush about, holding out bottle after bottle and watching as the essences were extracted from the Smash to reveal people of all ages and most likely, taken from all landmasses. No doubt they would become a wide range of bottles; at this point, the scientist was almost starting to lose count of how many of the little things he had produced.

"Yeah, we totally rocked in that!" Ram cheered, the pink of the White Sisters holding out her hand so Rom could return the high five after a moment's hesitation. "You bet this all would've failed if it weren't for our help!"

"From what I've been able to sense, every one of those monsters have been restored. We should expect no further reinforcements at least." The Mascot confirmed, Bauen giving a small sigh of relief as the group turned to the more important next step: the underling. Unfortunately, they were met with empty air – their fighting had been so intense that not a single one of them had managed to spare the time to check on the pale skinned girl's whereabouts. "Lowee is safe for now, thanks to you all. No words could hope to express my gratitude."

"We only did what we could… but that means you can't come with us to help, doesn't it?" Nepgear sighed, poking her fingers together. The Mascot had no way to truly visibly demonstrate her response, but the slight dimming in her light was all that was needed.

"Now that I have achieved my mission with the defeat of those monsters, I shall be put to task in another fashion. While the safety of Lowee is still in question, there is no way I could hope to leave this land," the Mascot explained. "Not that I can't assist you in any form… a moment please."

And the most ridiculous of things happened. The goddamn disc managed to split itself in half, the two pieces miraculously regenerating until there was a perfect copy of the first disc resting in Bauen's other hand with the exact same glow to it. How it managed to achieve such a thing was questionable in and of itself, but it was IF who brought up a similarly important question.

"Wait, if you could do something like regenerating yourself, then why didn't do it before!?"

"Unfortunately I do not have the answer for you. I never remember having this ability before, yet when my vessel was recreated, it came almost instinctively perhaps it's a side effect of the materials I was repaired with." Was the only answer the Mascot had to explain. "Still, this disc holds a portion of my own power. In that way, I shall be able to accompany you without leaving my protective position. This power is now yours to do with as you wish."

"Come on, are you done with the boring stuff yet? I want to go home now!" Ram's whining voice came from behind them, Nepgear giving a quick nod to the petulant child. Well, there was no reason to ignore her request, no matter how she gave it.

* * *

"I'm eternally grateful for what you have done. Lowee is in your debt." Mina intoned with a deep bow, Compa happily waving her off.

"We were doing what was right, no worries!" the pink haired girl dismissed.

"Add in the number of fullbottles I managed to get from such a thing and the fact that we got the support of the Mascot, we may have earned the same amount as Lowee did with the Smash's defeat." Bauen explained, his tone dipping downward. "Besides, it means a portion of the past has now been erased. Those people may carry on their lives in peace."

"Rest assured that we'll do our best to accommodate them. After all, having been isolated from humanity for so long is bound to have a negative effect." Mina replied, knowing full well the dual meaning of such a sentence. "I suppose you're planning to leave right away, aren't you?"

"We need to move on if we want to get the help of the Lastation Mascot as well." 5pb confirmed, Nepgear walking over to where Rom was watching the whole encounter with budding tears in her eyes.

"Don't worry Rom, we'll come back some time. This is meant to be a happy goodbye, okay?" Nepgear soothed, using her thumb to wipe away the water upon Rom's face as the girl gave a mall nod, both completely ignorant of the way that ram was biting her thumb with an impressive amount of force as the sister watched the two interact.

"With that, there is only the Lastation Mascot left to get on our side." Bauen declared, looking out of the window towards the bright sun shining outside. "Well, no time better than the present. Say your goodbyes and we can start moving immediately."

* * *

"Sorry sir, but our line of ships have all started to experience malfunctions. We're unsure as to when our service to Leanbox will be back in place."

Maybe they shouldn't have left so early. Bauen palmed his face in irritation as the staff member gave a deep bow. No matter how fast they moved, they had managed to miss the last boat out and even after waiting for it to return, it was to see a noticeboard full of red, every journey cancelled for an undetermined amount of time. Leanbox was notorious for the fact that it only truly had the naval transport routes to enter from; for some reason, all aerial possibilities had been denied and no airports had ever been constructed.

"You know what, out of the way! Even if I have to deal with it myself, we need to get to Leanbox as fast as possible. You lot, stay here. I'll get this mess sorted in a moment." Bauen grumbled, the old man pushing the staff attendant away despite their protests, the door behind him leading out to where a large number of ships had been docked. "Right then, what am I working with?"

"Um, sir? You can't be he-!" one of the mechanics at work began, only to have the old man's hand upon his lips, Bauen flicking about from coat pocket to coat pocket, pulling out all manners of tools as he moved over to where one of the ships were temporarily docked with a tut. "Sir!?"

"You're going about this all wrong. You're trying to implement Lowee technology into what is clearly a Planeptune system. I'm assuming these ships originated as a route between them?" Bauen asked as he held out his torch, immediately going to mess about with the wires, swapping almost all of their positions in no time at all.

"Y-yeah, simple journey, yet fair amount of traffic. All of a sudden, they were switched over from the Planeptune port to our own, then they broke after a few months." Now that was an interesting bit of news.

"Well that was obviously going to happen when you're trying to use incompatible techniques on this kind of circuitry." Bauen remarked in return, cringing back when sparks tried to hit him in the face. "Actually, scrap that. Broken technology at that. Minute cuts to all of these wires, adhesive thin enough to not be noticed by any other than… I've never seen your face around here. Are you new?"

"Around the same time as the ships came in. the higher ups said it was at the request of the new shareholders, wanted a complete overhaul of the business. But, as a mechanic, I also don't see any members of the public…" the man stated, Bauen letting loose with a small snort.

"I know, but people always seem to answer that question. Either makes them embarrassed at being pointed out or annoyed at the implication that they aren't skilled at what they do." The rider explained, giving a small sigh as he tugged out an entire piece of the engine in front of him, carelessly tossing it away as the mechanic scrambled backwards, avoiding the sparks that flew from the loose ends. "I mean, you don't even need that. If it _had_ been connected to the right things and _hadn't_ been about to fall apart, then you'd see what? A one to two percent increase in speed? For the amount of energy it's using, might as well just stick with the original engine only. It's almost as if…"

Bauen came out from underneath the engine, almost hitting his head upon the boat as his eyes narrowed.

"…Almost as if someone was trying to sabotage you. Tell me, do you know who these shareholders are?"

"No, we're not on the right level to be told and I never found a need to find out." the mechanic replied, plucking off his hat so he could wring it between his fingers. "Why? Should we be worried?"

"Well, yes, but there's no need to tell anyone. Probably get you killed." Bauen replied casually, ignoring the small gasp of shock as he patted the side of the boat, the rider slipping out in one single movement. "Now then, this ship should be back to one hundred percent, or thanks to your botched up job, beyond what it was doing before. Hope you don't mind, but I was wondering if me and my friends could commandeer this boat."

"Um, sure… we'll get one of the captains on it immediately." The mechanic declared, walking backwards slowly with only the slightest of tremors to his step. He really didn't have any idea what just happened, but if he remembered correctly, everything he was doing was wrong and the shareholders were purposely trying to sabotage their work.

He needed to go to sleep and forget any of this happened. In the actual game, he didn't even get involved.

* * *

"Ah, we finally made it!" Nepgear cried out as they walked off the boat, taking their first steps into the land of green pastures. Well at least, that was the title it had been given, for Bauen remembered there being a far greater amount of greenery around the place, something that Leanbox prided itself on. Looking at the area now, it was almost a completely different place.

"Everything looks peaceful!" Compa happily remarked before the nurse in training shrunk down into herself. "But… this place kind of looks like we're in a ghetto…"

"I suppose the lack of CPU has resulted in a drastic change in the state of the place…" Bauen mourned. "They're doing their best to survive, but there's only so much you can do without having to change a lot. Some people can't keep up with that change and you end up with places like this."

"Still, we don't have time to help these people yet, no matter how much we want to. We need to get to the Basilicom and meet the oracle." IF stated, pointing to the giant building in the distance like a beacon calling them forth. "Seeing as the underling has been there every time we found the Mascot, we'll probably end up running into her as well. Might as well get everything sorted there first so we can beat her to the punch."

"Hello? Are you Miss Chika Hakozaki?" Nepgear asked as they approached the first woman that matched the description they knew; green long hair, dark clothes of black and green and piercing red eyes. Those same eyes were cloudy as the woman stood staring into the abyss, Neptune rocking back and forth awkwardly. "Um, Miss Chika? Maybe I got the wrong person…"

"Huh? What the he—o-oh, yeah. My name's totally Chika Hakozaki." The woman replied, straightening out her dress with a nervous fervour. "Perchance, are you Nepgear?"

"Oh wow, I can't believe I've become so recognisable!" Nepgear preened, the oracle giving a nervous cough into her hand as she chuckled weakly.

"Huh? Well, no you're not, but…"

"Well it does make sense that she knows you. After all, we were _specifically asked by her to come, right?"_ Bauen remarked, Nepgear blinking owlishly before she got the implication, an easy smile appearing on her face.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Aw, does that mean I'm not recognisable?"

"I did…?" the oracle muttered, a hand going to her chin before she rapidly shook her head. "Of course, I did, yeah, right. Jeez, how forgetful of me! I needed to see you."

"Um… so why did you need Nepgear so bad?" 5pb wondered as the silence continued onward for perhaps a touch too long, Chika startling slightly as she started to play with the bottom of her hair.

"Ummm, Ummm…! Oh, that's right! I needed some help getting rid of a super powerful monster!" Chika exclaimed, triumphantly pounding her fist against her palm. "You see, without the CPU, we've been trying to muster as many forces and bolster our military might, but we're still practically defenceless. This is the sort of thing that only a CPU can handle, but we don't even have a candidate to work with. Out of all of the CP candidates I know of, you and your friends were the best choice!"

"Goodness! I'm flattered, but I'm still just a rookie…" Nepgear responded with a healthy blush, turning away so she could giggle to herself. Chika merely waved her off with a ginormous smile that showed a fair amount of her teeth in a perfectly, completely natural and normal way that any normal, not a fake person would do.

"No need to be so modest you broad. Anyway, go deal with that super powerful monster with the rest of your friends, okay? Really show off your skills." The oracle said. "Of course, it won't be any problem for such a battle-seasoned and powerful CPU Candidate like Nepgear."

"Golly, I'm probably blushing so much right now… okay! Leave it all to me!" the CPU Candidate of Planeptune declared triumphantly, only pausing when Bauen's hand came down heavily upon her shoulder.

"Actually, we do have some questions to ask first before we can do anything." The rider explained. "After all, our main intention when we came here was to ask for the assistance of the Leanbox Mascot."

"Of course, of course! I'll tell you where it is to the best of my abilities once you've managed to defeat the monster for me. It's a fair trade, wouldn't you say?" Chika responded, Bauen's eyes narrowing slightly.

"How remarkably easy. After all, taking the Mascot would typically result in the nation being somewhat exposed."

"Well, I'm sort of hoping that with the major issue solved, then our forces will be able to handle the defence of Leanbox a lot easier." Chika answered easily, perking up. "But you know what would help if you took the Mascot? Bauen, you can make all sorts of stuff if I remember correctly, maybe you could help with the production of our tech!"

"…I'm sure I can do something, they can handle the monster just as well without my assistance." Bauen eventually declared turning to the group and sharing a silent message with IF. "Meet me back here when you've defeated this monster affecting the city. By that time we'll have probably managed to at least make some leeway into improving the technology here into something more suitable for the defence of Leanbox."

"Okay then! We'll beat this monster down real good!" Nepgear promised, the others forced to run after her as the CPU Candidate dashed off without even truly knowing what the monster even looked like, eliciting a sigh from Bauen. Yep, probably would have to deal with that kind of attitude sooner rather than later. Turning to where Chika was eagerly rubbing her hands together, Bauen gave a small shrug.

"Well then, where can I assess the workshop?"

Chika, unknown to Bauen, gave a fierce cackle in the depths of her mind. Even the genius was just as much of a fool as the other broads in his little freak show! Soon, he would be supplying her with the very robots that would kill them all and she would finally be able to get out of this damn job as an underling!

* * *

 **Yep, that seems like enough for now. Please, tell me what you think oft his chapter. Not too much to say this time except we're getting closer to the return of the CPUs and with that might come some changes. I'm sure you'll learn what that means eventually.**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	13. 13 - the Leanbox armament

**How far can we get into Leanbox this time? Welcome back folks! Eve if I have other ideas that I'm currently exploring, I would be a fool to give these up; if I haven't deleted them, then I believe I can still carry them on. I also have introduced something I've been asked about a fair bit in this chapter. What is it? well, please read and find out! Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: A wizard using his magic... for cooking? How incredibly mundane._

 _Harry: A scientist using his inventions for fighting? How incredibly violent!_

 _Bauen: My discoveries weren't meant to fight, they were to defend! There's a difference!_

 _Harry: Defending is simply fighting on someone else's terms._

 _B + H: Rider once more! With a magic touch!_

* * *

Several different factories, all happily buzzing away as they went about their daily routines. Of course, being one of the nations who prided themselves on the green nature of their landmass, there was a far greater amount of physical forces that the more advanced workforces of Planeptune or Lastation. Everything seemed to be in place and even if they were basically spending their days developing potentially incredibly dangerous weapons, the people seemed to be happy.

"Well of course! After all, this place prides itself on keeping the workers happy! _Probably…_ " Chika declared with an awkward chuckle, the last part spoken just softly enough to escape Bauen's hearing… probably. "But the issue is, none of our technologies are advancing like any of the other nations. I mean, Lowee can get away with it, being the backwa- I mean, having such a focus on _alternative means_ , but if we don't advance our technology, then we'll be put in a position where we're open to monster attacks. If you wanna take the Mascot from us, then we need to have a back-up plan, you get me?"

"I suppose that is reasonable. All of these weapons… their calibre seems rather high for conventional forces. Do they require multiple people to utilise?" Bauen muttered, the old man plucking one of the incomplete firearms right off the conveyor belt with a fair amount of effort. If you just took the normal soldier or guild member, then it was pretty unlikely that they had the raw strength to be lugging such a hefty weapon around and the potential kick it would produce when firing the… rockets, for it most certainly wasn't a bullet firing weapon and the mechanisms were all wrong for a laser type cannon, would probably kick the vast majority of the force onto their backs.

"N-nope! You see, the soldiers… uh… they have special suits! Yep, like exoskeleton thingies that allow them to handle weapons way more than they normally would! They pack a real punch too!" Chika explained with only the smallest amount of hesitation. Bauen simply let an eyebrow rise; exoskeletons were rather expensive to develop. In order to equip the amount of soldiers needed to wield this many weapons, it would cost a pretty penny to say the least. Leanbox had better funding than the rider first expected. "I'm sure you could find a way to maybe help them be a bit lighter in their design? Or add more firepower, I'm sure you can come up with something real strong!"

"I look at this and wonder if you need anything more. After all, I've seen the forces of the other nations and they don't seem to have anything like this…" Bauen mused, trying his hardest to pack away the giant cannon into his inventory. "Planeptune favours guild members with robotic forces, Lastation sticks to conventional forces and Lowee… is Lowee, normally the weather hinders monsters there and they predominantly use the guild as well. I've never seen people try to combine the robotic and human forces though, perhaps it would be easier to put funding from exoskeletons into a robotic aspect of the army."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll think about it later. Have fun!" and then Chika left without a second word, waving goodbye until Bauen could barely see the green haired girl with how fast she moved away. With a weary sigh, the man let his glance fall over the factory as it continued its work. well, might as well start his side of the plan.

"Not entirely sure it'll work out and if things don't fall into place the way I expect them to, things could get a little interesting. Well, I can't say life is very much worth living without a little bit of risk." The old man muttered with his head in his hands. "Well, shall we begin the experiment?"

* * *

"I'm very sorry, but today is the day you will meet your end!" Nepgear yelled as she approached the monster, her build driver already in hand and settling into place upon her waist. With Chika's praises still ringing in her ear, a pair of bottles were rapidly shaken in Nepgear's hands – this would all be over before it was time for tea!

 _ **DANCER!**_

 _ **PEACH!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"Wait Nepgear! Have a little bit of restraint!" called IF as she and the others hurried to reach the same point, but all of the powers of the CPU candidate seemed to have been focused upon her legs; Almost as soon as they set off, Nepgear had been moving far faster than any normal maker could keep up with. "I don't think this is going to be as easy as you think.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Don't worry! Miss Chika said that we were the best choice for this!" Nepgear dismissed with barely a moment's hesitation, throwing her arms out wide before falling into a combat ready pose. "Henshin!"

 _ **FRESH!**_

"Bad things, bad things, fly away! Love sunshine!" called out the now transformed Nepgear, her fingers forming a heart over her own that sent forth a bright blast of pink energy. Covering her eyes, IF et out a grunt as the blast kicked up a huge amount of dust around the beast. Everything fell silent – surely she couldn't have defeated the monster in a single blow.

A massive roar.

Ah, Nepgear hadn't even managed to scratch it.

"H-huh!? W-wait a moment! I was just warming up!" Nepgear immediately declared, hesitantly backing away before she remembered just how her powers worked like this. A hand immediately went to the lever situated to the side of a driver, the girl's battlecry growing as she spun it more and more. She could feel the power growing within her, an energy she didn't really know filling her to the absolute brim as she continued to spin the lever. "This time, I'm going to finish you off for real!"

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

"Soar, melody of love! Cure Stick, Peach Rod!" a white staff with a head of pink crystal covered with rainbow coloured buttons formed in front of Nepgear, immediately being snatched up so the transformed girl could run her hand along the colours and prepare its power. In a single graceful movement, a heart was traced in the air before Nepgear, a single thrust causing it to swell with pink energy as the girl drew back. "Bad things, bad things, fly away! Love sunshine fresh!"

The blast was even bigger as the heart flew into the monster, who barely looked concerned with the sight. Once more, the ground trembled as energy and monster flesh met, Compa even being knocked onto her back from the sheer force of the strike, but the once plucky face of the transformed Nepgear quickly fell into despair when the end result was revealed. Sure, she had done more than she had managed to accomplish before, but it only served to now make the once complacent monster far angrier. If it weren't for a blue dragon slamming into her side, Nepgear would've been soundly sliced in two.

 _ **CROSS-Z FLAME!**_

The Cross-Z dragon with the dragon fullbottle loaded into suddenly began to spray streams of blue fire all over the monster, the beats roaring as it tried to bat away the intense heat that scorched its skin. It was the perfect distraction for 5pb and compa to charge forth, the Gashat Gear Dual's dial being twisted while a variety of acids were quickly splashed all over the monster's skin.

 _ **DOREMIFA DJ!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON, LET'S JAM!**_

 _ **SPIN THE BEATS! COME ON, LET'S JAM!**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **HEY-HEY-HEY! DOREMIFA DJ!**_

Nepgear didn't move, even as the newly transformed Kamen rider Tune landed beside her, a shout into her Gashacon shouter causing waves of sound to disorient the monster they were facing, nor did the CPU Candidate react when Compa was nearly thrown into her, the nurse in training rubbing her backside as she charged into the fight. Even with multiple people, it didn't even seem like they were going to win and she was the one who initiated the fight.

"See Nepgear, this is why you wait for all of us to be ready!" IF growled as she shook the sword fullbottle in her hand, the power boost allowing her rapid Qatar slashes to do a tiny bit more damage than they had been able to before. Even still, they were only doing the minimal amount of damage they could and the hulking beast's attacks proved more than a match for their defences. "Damn it, why isn't Bauen here!? We could use his power right now, I knew this was all way too sketchy!"

Nepgear wasn't sure what to do. Her final attacks had already proven to have little effect and she had drained a good amount of energy trying to pull them off; she would be left in a less than desirable position if she tried to do another and that wouldn't help anyone of the attack she used was useless. The debate left her frozen, at least until the flames of a dragon before her face brought her back into the real world, letting her barely dodge a massive sword born of stone.

"For goodness sakes, give me that!" IF finally broke, her sheer disappointment of the situation combining with the odd effects of the sword fullbottle resulting in the brunette ripping out the bottles from the build driver before the CPU Candidate could protest, her transformation falling away as the belt was ripped off her waist and placed upon IF's. "You can use your HDD form easier, right? That would be of more use to us than you using the driver! I'll do it!"

She moved to plunge the grey bottle into one of the slots, only for a burst of music above her to cause their attention to move skyward where the Cross-Z Dragon was awaiting, its head and tail folding inwards as it fell into IF's palm.

 _ **WAKE UP!**_

A quick glance revealed something that IF had never realised, nor had the others; with the dragon fullbottle already inserted and the spacing and shape of the dragon's legs, it would fit perfectly into the build driver's two slots. Was that really something she would be able to do? A quick grunt escaped the guild agent, the dragon raised high into the air.

"Screw it! It's not like we have any better choice!"

 _ **CROSS-Z DRAGON!**_

As IF began furiously cranking the lever, the same snap builder that usually formed appeared around IF, only for additional armour to form at the side in the shape of a dragon while the two half bodies took on a similar visage unlike the dual colours of Build's normal forms.

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"You bet I am! Henshin!"

 _ **WAKE UP BURNING! GET CROSS-Z DRAGON! YEAH!**_

Flames formed around IF's new armour as light blue dragon heads forming eyes began to glow with power. The dragon that had formed upon the side of the snap builder swung around, its wings folding over the chest plate as its golden head formed the middle centrepiece of the helmet, golden flames decorating the dark navy armour. The power she felt… IF felt _invincible!_

With a single punch, the new kamen rider was able to force back the monster with a burning fist, another firm strike shattering the sword in its hand as if it were nothing more than weak glass. Even 5pb with her own armour was forced to back away as the rampaging tyrant of burning rage that was IF started a relentless assault upon the beast, giant marks left where her fists connected.

 _ **BEAT CLOSER!**_

"DIE YOU STUPID MONSTER!" the girl roared, holding her hands out as a sword formed within her hands. Within seconds, it was furiously slashing away at the beast, its defences that had once proved so strong being rendered little more than the tiniest of hurdles in the face of such a powerful string of attacks. Eventually, the sword fullbottle found its way into the slot in the centre of the weapon, a firm hand reaching for the grip and pulling it back three times.

 _ **SPECIAL TUNE!**_

 _ **HIPPARE!**_

 _ **HIPPARE!**_

 _ **HIPPARE!**_

 _ **MEGA SLASH!**_

What came out of IF's mouth was incomprehensible as anything over than a bestial roar of her own, techno music filling the air as lights danced on the side of the beat closer's blade. The party was left in awe as the kamen rider raised her weapon, silver energy building up to form an even larger spectral form of her weapon before she swung it downward. A massive explosion rocking the area.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **DRACONIC FINISH!**_

But then she wasn't done, for a giant spectral Chinese dragon of blue formed around her body as she tensed up, IF launching forward with a kick that further spread the explosion so much that a fair few of the trees surrounding weren't there after the dust settled. It was excessive, it was violent and even then, IF was still beating on the monster as its body dissolved into dust, only pausing when her fist met the cold ground. As soon as she realised what she had done, IF slumped to the ground, her transformation dissolving around her as Compa rushed over to her side.

"…This isn't looking good…"

* * *

"Legislation changed by Oracle: now allows for unhindered worship of Arfoire. How strange…" it would make sense considering how odd the Oracle was acting at the moment, but for all of the various laws put into place to be so suddenly reversed? That was cause for concern. Then again, that was what happened when you let all of the pressures that a CPU had to bear on the shoulders of a normal maker, especially without the assistance of a CPU Candidate in order to alleviate some of the stresses. Perhaps Chika really had just gone insane. With a click of the back button on the Build phone, Bauen settled back into his work, lowering the goggles onto his eyes once more as the burning flames of a welding torch burst to life again.

The scientist had made good headway into the designs he put forth; naturally made with Leanbox in mind, but with the flair and inside layout of a Planeptune piece. After all, that was the place where he worked and it was the technology he was most familiar with; might as well spread the love while he could. it was around ten percent lighter than the design they were currently using for their weapons and would produce less of a kick when handled by normal people while retaining its current strength – he would've improved the firepower, but he first wanted to ensure that there was a stable and more efficient base to work from.

 _ **YOU'VE GOT MAIL!**_

His thoughts and work however by the sudden alert coming from his phone, a sigh escaping him as he stopped all progress. While there was absolutely nothing stopping him from continuing with his work, knowing that Nepgear and the rest of them had managed to complete their side of the bargain was reason enough for a temporary break. With lazy hands, the man gave a yawn as he picked up the smartphone from the side of the bench.

 _Monster defeated, but IF in bad situation. Nepgear's not the best either. Head to hospital immediately._

 _-sent from IF's phone-_

Well, that wasn't quite as positive as Bauen was expecting.

He threw down the welding torch and immediately grabbed a fullbottle, a few shakes having it ready for when he reached outside. Of course the hospital would be so far away from the workshop he had been granted access to, why wouldn't it?

It was strange though. Despite the fact that it required a bit more power than the average party of guild agents would be able to provide, the monster was faced with a CPU Candidate and a girl with the power of a kamen rider, in addition to one of the Guild's strongest powerhouses (from what he assumed considering what IF had managed to pull off) as well as a nurse in training that had proven herself useful in an offensive and support position. Surely it couldn't have been so strong as to cause IF such grievous injury that she was beyond Compa's capabilities?

"Oof! Hey, watch it!" Bauen's concerns had meant that he didn't notice when a girl in black walked before him, completely lost in thought as well (though if the old man ever deigned to bring it up, she would deny it every time). It didn't take long for Bauen to recognise just who he walked into however, the girl's pouting face quickly fading as she too understood just who she had come across. "Bauen? What are you doing here?"

"Ah, Uni. You see, we were working on something for the Basilicom… when Nepgear's party ended up getting into a little bit of an issue. Right now, I have to see to them at the hospital." Now that was enough to get the Lastation CPU Candidate's attention, her eyebrows immediately rising and whatever composure she had completely gone. "I assume then that you were trying to raise your own shares in a different nation that had no way to fight back? How noble of you miss Uni."

"Don't try and change the subject! You say Nepgear's in trouble!?" Uni immediately yelled, Bauen letting out a small chuckle as he inserted the fullbottle into the top of the Build phone, the bike unfolding from within. "What were you lot doing that put a CPU Candidate in trouble enough to send them to the hospital?"

"A monster issue, told by the Oracle that it was a monster that could be handled by a CPU Candidate, only for it to apparently be something beyond that. Walking into an ambush like that meant they were out of their league." Bauen explained bitterly as the engine revved to life. Hopefully IF and Nepgear were in stable condition, if not the best of conditions. "It makes sense though, considering we have an Oracle that seems out of her mind and doesn't really care for her nation beyond improving the military."

"You were an inventor right? So you were making new weapons for her?" Uni asked, Bauen sighing at the slight suspicion that played on her words. His past meant she had every reason to feel that way, but it didn't stop the silent accusation from burning.

"…Yes, yes I was. If it's for the people, then I'll make these weapons. _More importantly_ , the others were sent into what would be a death trap for normal people and considering that there were at three normal people there when it occurred, to her knowledge at least, I'm really starting to feel concern."

"Wait, hold up!" Uni called out, the bike suddenly pulling up as Uni jumped off without hesitation. "Hey, aren't you two the Lowee CPU Candidates?"

"Huh? Who are you? Have we actually become famous in a different nation? Will we have to scribble our names over random pieces of paper?" one of the people Uni called out to questioned, quite clearly Ram if her excitable nature meant anything. And where Ram was…

"There's Mr Bauen too… does that mean Miss Nepgear is here as well?" Ah yes, Rom was there too. Giving a small wave from the Machine Builder, he waved the trio over, the two younger CPU Candidates following on a lot more hesitantly. "Mr Bauen, did you bring Miss Nepgear with you?"

"Yeah, Uni and I were actually going to go visit her, if you two want to join?" Bauen spoke in a softer tone, Uni's eyebrow rising as Rom emphatically agreed, though her twin was a little off-put by the suggestion seeing as she folded her arms and turned away petulantly. So this guy was familiar with all of the CPU Candidates huh? "I'm warning you now though… one of her friends is in a bad situation and I don't how bad Nepgear is either. They were in a really hard fight, so we're going to visit them at the hospital. Respect that, okay?"

"Why should we care about that dummy?" Ram muttered, only to receive a soft slap on the top of her head. Almost immediately, she cried out in pain, grabbing the afflicted area with an accusatory glare. "What was that for, you meanie!?"

"You should be showing some respect. Nepgear's in a bad place right now, even if you don't like her, you should be able to at least show some care for that, are you really so childish?" Bauen scolded, making his way back to the bike and giving a gruff gesture to Uni. "Come Uni, Rom. I see no reason to waste time with such a childish CPU Candidate."

"H-hey don't leave me!" but the engine of the Machine Builder was already revving, Rom situating herself in a sidecar that magically appeared at the side with a simple touch of the screen at the head of the motorbike. "I won't be so mean to Nepgear, just don't leave me alone! Please!"

"…Well, come on then. I did think rom would be quite upset if I left you here." Bauen muttered, pointing to the space next to Rom. With a pleased expression, Ram quickly made her way in and from that point on, all three were making their way to the hospital as fast as possible, rom cowering slightly at the speed while ram cheered all the way. Apparently, though Lowee was almost like a theme park in and of itself with the architecture, it was rather rare for the two of them to experience thrill rides due to their age.

* * *

"Thank you doctor."

Nepgear didn't even turn at the sound of the door creaking open, barely acknowledging Bauen's arrival even as the old man sat heavily down beside her. All the CPU Candidate could do at that time was tighten her hold on IF's hand, the low buzz of Bauen's analysis filling the air.

"She hasn't moved a bit. The Doctor's said that there's only really exhaustion and weakness, but it looks way worse than that." Compa remarked. Even with the small amount of medical expertise she held, there was only so much she could do to assist the doctors and their guess had been as good as hers as to just how IF had been locked in her strange situation.

"She utilised the Cross-Z dragon's transformation systems before she was ready." Bauen stated and from the shocked look of Compa and Lyrica, the kamen rider was immediately on the mark. "Compa, you and IF had been given those fullbottles in order to raise your hazard level. When you reached the appropriate hazard level, I was planning on steadily introducing you to new systems, so you would be able to perform on the same level as everyone else, which included the Cross-Z Dragon but it requires you to have a minimal hazard level of three… IF's hazard level is approximately two point eight. She placed more strain on her body than she is capable of withstanding, if she had been any lower, then she might've already be dissolving before our very eyes as the power eats her from the inside out."

Perhaps there was a better way of phrasing it, but it was the honest truth; those who utilised the powers of the rider systems beyond their hazard level were at incredible risk of rupturing everything that made them who they were and IF, in all honesty, was simply one of the lucky ones. This wasn't on the same level as simply being turned into a Smash, where exposure caused them to mutate into a monstrous form; that was actually quite a low dosage in comparison. Compa's hazard level of two point five meant that she would've had an even worse reaction if she had used the Cross-Z Dragon.

"…This is my fault. I was cocky and it meant that IF had to do this to defeat the monster…" Nepgear eventually managed to whisper, her voice almost lost even in the silence. "If I had been able to beat the monster, then she wouldn't have gotten angry and she wouldn't have needed to transform as well…"

"…Tell me, Nepgear – what did you use to attack the monster?" Bauen began after a brief pause, Nepgear's eyes raising hesitantly.

"I tried that dancer-peach best match…"

"I see. I had done some research into the properties of those attacks and I think I can see why you did little to harm it. Was the monster in any particular way angry at all?" asked Bauen, to receive a slow negative reply. "Then that was your issue. Whereas many of the typical best matches' vortex finishes are meant to be pure damage attacks, the primary function of those attacks appear to be anger reducing, with a reduced damage output to balance the secondary effect. If the opponent is a particularly tough one and doesn't bear any anger, then the effects are greatly nullified."

Nepgear's heart fell at that; so there wasn't even a chance of her doing much with that attack from the beginning, huh? She was about to sink even further into her seat until a hand upon her shoulder caused her to keep her eyes focused upon Bauen, the cold analytical visage he had suddenly fading away to something softer.

"But you had no way of knowing that. I gave you that driver in the knowledge that you would see it as a greater power and you used it in that manner – _no one can blame you for that_. You cannot fault a person for wielding a weapon they've been told to wield; even if it is the event that led us here, there's no reason for us to feel as if you've done an injustice." The man continued, looking to the grey fullbottle sat upon the desk just to the side of the bed. "And it is I who has given those fullbottles away, despite knowing full well they serve to increase aggression in those who use them. Compa has used it less, and so she has faced less of the side effects… but although we have seen that IF did not respond well to the aggression, I allowed her to have continued access. I cannot hold pride when I allowed someone who responded badly access, like a drug addict to a dealer. But, I'm not the only one who wishes to talk to you Nepgear. Take a step outside."

"Who did you bring Bauen?" Lyrica questioned when, after a questioning look, Nepgear gently plodded outside.

"Oh, just a couple of friends. While they get back together, we'll return to the Basilicom and see if we can't finish off this business with Oracle Chika."

* * *

"We've returned, though short of a few people." Bauen declared as he, Lyrica and a fairly reluctant Compa. Leaving IF alone at the hospital wasn't exactly something the pink haired girl immediately agreed with, but there was professional care and a little note on the side that just so happened to have a few suggestions that would help her recovery, slow as it would be. "Miss Chika, we have defeated the monster that you requested and the work on the main bulk of my weaponry improvements have been achieved. In the face of that, surely you could allow us access to the Mascot's location now."

"O-oh, you actually managed to beat it!?" Chika exclaimed before quickly smoothening her face with a kind smile, though marred by the wild movements of her eyes. "Yes, the mascot… well, we're, uh, currently investigating it and… um… yeah. I'm sure we'll have an answer for you soon! Trust me!"

"Should we? I don't know… you made a promise after all." Lyrica remarked gently, a small grunt escaping the oracle as she immediately whirled round to face the idol.

"Hey, what about me is so untrustworthy? I've done nothing to offend you, have I?" the green haired girl sniffed, Bauen merely giving a shrug of his shoulders.

"Well, how about the multiple times that you've attacked us through the various nations? I never thought it would be possible to forget just how badly you were beaten in Lowee; your monsters stood no chance." The man suggested, immediately causing the oracle to pound a foot on the ground with a growl.

"Hey, those weren't my monsters! Besides, you didn't beat _me_ -!" she called out, only to just realise her mistake when she suddenly covered up her mouth with a gasp. Bauen let a growl of his own escape as he cracked his knuckles. "Damn it, how did you see through my disguise!?"

"Well, you have been acting rather shifty. If you wish to make a better disguise, at least act like the person who you're intimidating." The kamen rider growled, the build driver at his waist and the rabbit and tank fullbottles shaking in his hands. "Now, I'd appreciate it if you told us where the actual Chika is."

"Tch! You'll never catch me alive! I've done everything that I needed to in this damn place! See you later idiots!" the underling cackled in response, treating the entire Basilicom to the sight of who appeared to be their own Oracle directly summoning enemy monsters right into the heart of the building. While she made a break for it, the trio shared a glance, guitar and needle prepared as Bauen stepped forward.

 _ **RABBIT!**_

 _ **TANK!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin."

 _ **HAGANE NO MOONSAULT! RABBIT-TANK! YEAH!**_

As soon as the Snap Builder disappeared and the steam was vented from the armour, Build threw back the build phone to Compa while the other hand was busy raising the drillcrusher in its gun formation to hold back the two Smash that began ambling towards them.

"Lyrica and I shall hold them off here, you call the others and follow after the underling. Inserting your fullbottle into the top should transform the phone into the bike form." The kamen rider explained, dodging aside as a pair of arm mounted swords tried to slice him vertically, earning the Smash a pair of shots to the red eyed face. "Go, quickly!"

 _ **BUILD CHANGE!**_

And so Compa ran outside, pressing the doctor fullbottle into the phone and watching as the bike came out of it. The nurse in training couldn't exactly call herself the best of riders but it was simple enough to understand; she might say she had more trouble with the phone part itself rather than the vehicle as she tapped the screen at the head of the bike.

As sound waves bashed into the green smash that tried to attack with limbs stretching far beyond human capabilities, the incredible jumping power of the rabbit half-body meant that Bauen was easily able to void the sword strikes of the other purple Smash, admittedly at the cost of some property damage, with a large number of the civilians already evacuated and the rest halfway there, Bauen would soon be able to do more, the drillcrusher's drill form digging into the sword wielding Smash's body.

"I must say, I've been looking forward to a bit of action after being locked away. I feel I'm getting a little too anxious in my old age." Bauen tauntingly called out as the drillcrusher narrowly avoided striking the shoulder of the purple Smash, only to watch as three now stood where there had once been only one. "A little anxious and perhaps a little too reckless. No matter, I'll deal with this in a second."

 _ **NINJYA!**_

 _ **COMIC!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY?**_

"I was saving this one for when I would be able to properly create the weapon. This just gave me the reason to do so. Build up!"

 _ **SHINOBI NO ENTERTAINER! NINNIN-COMIC! YEAH!**_

Yellow and purple slammed in place around Build's armour, replacing red rabbits with the purple armour styled after a ninjya, the ferocious blue of a tank being swapped for yellow pens and manga panels. A pen like katana also appeared in his hands, deft hands allowing it to block the multiple strikes that came from around him with relative ease. A single pull of the trigger had one of the panels at the side of the yellow blade glowing, a second causing it to suddenly pulse with power at the fountain pen nib placed at the top.

 _ **BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!**_

And then the three different Smash were met with three different Builds, the two clones drawn using the pen nib at the top of the katana, the innate agility granted by the ninjya half-body allowing them to dance around the strikes of the sword wielding monsters. It appeared that the duplication ability was the main power granted to the monster, for beyond that, there was very little to worry about offence-wise. What a shame.

"I suppose that means I'll end this quickly. No point drawing it out in such an important place like this." The rider mused, the clones holding their weapons high once more with a few rapid pulls of the trigger having different panels glowing until they reached the ones they desired, a smile appearing behind the original's helmet.

 _ **KATON NO JUTSU!**_

 _ **KAEN NO GIRI!**_

 _ **FUUTON NO JUTSU!**_

 _ **TATSUMAKI NO GIRI!**_

Almost immediately, one sword became wreathed in flames while the other suddenly summoned up a tornado around the blade, Lyrica breathing deeply as the lightning struck her own smash and put it out for the moment. It meant that the idol was able to take the moment to watch as fire and wind danced in the air, forcefully drawing two of the other Smash into the sky with it. As they burnt, several various objects taken from the Basilicom that had been swept up in the raging tornado rammed into the monsters, a particularly rough encounter causing both 5pb and Build to wince; no matter whether you were aware of just what was happening or not, that most certainly _wasn't_ were you wanted a _desk_ of all things to hit you.

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX FINISH! YEAH!**_

For the last Smash however, Build started running straight towards it, the monster raising its swords ready to counter the incoming counter blow, only for both to hit nothing. Well, only the smash really tried to hit anything, for in a cloud of smoke and autumn leaves, the rider simply disappeared completely for the briefest of moments before the entire world fell dark. 5pb wouldn't know exactly what happened, only for a huge amount of outlandish yellow comic sound effect bubbles to pierce through the darkness, the black cloud over her eyes fading away to reveal a downed Smash and a dramatically posing Bauen. The singer only had about a million questions about how that actually worked and _what the heck it even was_.

"Well, it's quite simple actually. I used the power of a ninjya in order to make my finishing attack mysterious and dramatic and then used the power of comics in order to emphasise the physicality of the attack. Surely such a grand combination is worthy of being the finisher for a best match." Build explained, quite proudly actually. Even if he wasn't the exactly the most spry of things, he could afford to be childish sometimes and who didn't like ninjas?

Well, apart from samurai. Ninjyas and samurai were the worst of enemies.

"Um… well that doesn't explain much actually…" the blue haired singer meekly replied, a drop of sweat falling down her forehead as two empty bottles soon sucked up the Smashes' essences. The victims used to form the Smash weren't in bad shape and once the workers at the Basilicom returned, they would be properly tended to. At the moment, they had bigger issues to contend with.

 _ **ROSE!**_

 _ **HELICOPTER!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"Well, I'm sure I could think up a better explanation while we make our way over to the others." Build dismissed, cranking the lever of the build driver while he held out his other hand. "Shall we go?"

"Right!"

 _ **CHONETSU NO SENPUUKI! ROSE-COPTER! YEAH!**_

* * *

 **Next time, save the real Chika! If there was anyone who was going to demonstrate the increased aggression the fullbottles produce, it was always going to be IF, complete with a dragon to top things off! There will be others who can transform normally, but there's something else in plan for them. To find out what, please look forward to the next chapter!**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	14. 14 - the Share collection concert

**Edit:** **reuploaded so everyone get's a notif about it:**

 **I'd like to make a response to this review:**

 ** _'I was wondering what you meant about the sarcastic chapter names, but I end up seeing a bunch of unimaginative chapter titles that seem like you got lazy and did this half-heartedly, idiot!'_**

 **The titles for the chapter were in a response to my accidentally naming multiple chapters with similar titles (examples being multiple uses of 'the X battle' and 'the X beatdown', which resulted in the current chapter titles) as I usually name chapters last minute with the first thing that comes to mind. This results in** **unimaginative titles on occassion and i** **n order to poke fun at myself in what was aimed as a sarcastic and ironic, but an admittedly passive aggressive manner, I changed the titles to be _purposely_ even more unimaginative and boring in response to this review:**

 _ **'You couldn't think up creative chapter names for your story, huh?**_  
 _ **Well, it's to be expected since you don't care enough to proofread these stories that won't trigger grammar nazis.'**_

 **I've taken the review constructively and responded to the proofreading remark below and have formulated noew official chapter titles that do not repeat themselves:**

 ** _1 - the metal moonsault_**

 ** _2 - the guild quest_**

 ** _3 - the Lastation adventure_**

 ** _4 - the Candidate battle_**

 ** _5 - the Hematite hunt_**

 ** _6 - the sisters' duel_**

 ** _7 - the idol invasion_**

 ** _8 - the villain trap_**

 ** _9 - the Genmeer Guardians_**

 ** _10 - the Lowee children_**

 ** _11 - the monster revelation_**

 ** _12 - the Smash beatdown_**

 ** _13 - the Leanbox armament_**

 **However, I would appreciate not being called an idiot for doing exactly what I set out to do; in order to be self depreciative, I sarcastically 'improved' my half-hearted and unimaginative titles by making them even more half-hearted and unimaginative. I hope that this has explained the situation with the names. Thank you for listening.**

* * *

 **Okay, got some concerns that I need to bring up. If somebody wishes to proofread these stories, then I am perfectly happy for them to do so. It's just somewhat awkward considering the highly sporadic and random manner in which I write that makes it difficult to work with a beta. I am fully aware that the golden rabbit and silver dragon being a best match is a result of hazard level 7; I was making reference to how the actual sound was explained by TV Asahi's official website. With the** **transformation** **into Cross-Z, the dragon fullbottle had already been inserted into the Cross-Z dragon, IF did not utilise the sword fullbottle - hopefully the wording is now clearer. Hopefully that clears some things up. Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: Chrom, enter the battlefield. It is no innocent place, regardless of the faces you meet._

 _Chrom: Deep inside, who is this for? Deep inside, what is this for? Can you truly answer those questions?_

 _Bauen: For the sake of all humanity, for all of Gamindustri! No matter how many times I regret, the sky today is still answerless._

 _Chrom: Feel the unwavering desire in the thunder resonating in the silence! Make your wish in the dark!_

 _B + C: Rider once more! Now it's time!_

* * *

"Ha, you don't even have the weird old man with you! Don't expect this fight to be the same as usual!"

"I hear the underling! They must be close!" Lyrica called out as she was slowly lowered closer to the ground in order to avoid the sharp stones that jutted out of the roof of the cavern they entered. Thanks to the powers of the helicopter half-body, Kamen rider Build had far more control of his flight than if he had used any other bottle, even if it was a bit slower than he preferred. It meant that they were comfortably cruising with Lyrica being held up by her arms, keeping a solemn watch for the CPU Candidates and Compa.

With only a few ore minutes' flying, they found themselves faced with a rather familiar situation; the underling emptily boasting of how she was going to defeat the party with Warechu at her side, the black rat holding tightly onto the Mascot form the sight of things. The two landed right besides the Oracle hiding to the side, her mere presence within the dungeon speaking volumes about what had happened.

"The true Miss Chika I assume?" Build questioned as Lyrica was released, the blue haired idol delicately dusting herself off, only for the close presence of the helicopter propellers to the ground to suddenly kick up a huge cloud of dust, completely covering her body. His response was a quick nod as the woman looked upon the pair in confusion, an air of sudden realisation coming over her body.

"Wait, 5pb? As in the idol 5pb?" the disoriented oracle questioned, grabbing her forehead before wine red eyes opened wide, Lyrica repeatedly shaking her head.

"N-nope! No, just someone who… happens to look a lot like her…!" she quickly denied, Chika clearly unbelieving for the first few minutes before she settled down again. "More importantly, we're here to help the fight against the underling and get you out of here!"

"Though whether we're truly needed or not remains to be seen." The kamen rider pointed out, both girls turning to see where a torrent of flame suddenly appeared directly before the underling, the green haired girl yelping as she jumped back with a growl towards the grinning Ram. It meant that the underling completely missed the ice that shot towards her back, Rom giving a small war cry as she thrust her staff forward, with several more shards of ice digging into the underling's back. With another sound of frustration, the underling completely shattered the pieces of ice lodged in her body, Rom now being the one to cry out as a rough hand grabbed her by the collar and tossed her straight into her sister, the underling flipping away from the bullets and acid that would've landed thanks to Compa and Uni. "They look like they have a good grip on the situation."

"…Do they?" both Chika and Lyrica voiced at the same time, watching as the underling threw her pickaxe, the weapon lodging itself mere centimetres away from nurse in training's head, Compa quickly fleeing the scene as several spikes of rock rocketed down from the ceiling, Uni not so fortunate as she found one ripping the back of her dress. This was one of her favourites damn it! Admittedly, she wore pretty much the same design most of the time, but that just meant most of her wardrobe was her favourite! Lyrica pulled her guitar off her back, ready to leap into the fray as well, only for Build's hand upon the strings to cause her to stop.

"We have a more important job to do, follow me."

* * *

"Now you've made me mad!" Uni growled, light engulfing he body before Black Sister surged out, her gun already firing several shots that the underling easily managed to avoid. While it was much more difficult for the underling to fight back when her enemy was aerial, Rom and Ram quickly joining in their own HDD forms, she was still perfectly capable of avoiding their attacks no matter what was thrown her way, wild cackling filling the air as she bounced around the entire cavern like a maniac. "What the hell?! Why can't we hit her anymore!?"

"Sucks to be you lot! I've managed to get my hands on an all new and improved soldier exoskeleton thanks to you dumb idiots!" the underling yelled, subtly pulling her coat away to reveal the metal hidden within, gears whirring and moving with every movement she made. "Thanks to this thing, I'm more than able to dodge everything you broads throw at me, with some cool new weapons to throw in as well! Watch this!"

And then a massive rocket launcher appeared upon her shoulder, the underling grinning as she pulled the trigger. It wasn't just one rocket that came out however, but several, all zooming around wildly in an attempt to find their appropriate target, or more accurately, completely surround them with a wall of explosives. Ram and Rom quickly found themselves back to back before a huge barrage of missiles slammed into their bodies, Uni desperately trying to shoot them down, only to be left distracted and vulnerable when Compa succumbed to the massive amount of missiles. Once the vast amount of dust died down, all of the CPU Candidates and Compa were left breathing heavily, l the nurse in training even worse for wear.

Lyrica and Chika both clung onto each other as the walls of the cavern began to tremble, far too many explosions seriously damaging the structural integrity of the room – if too many more continued to hit the walls, then there was a serious risk of the roof coming down on top of them. If it weren't for Bauen noticeably sneaking away to do… something, then the two probably would've legged it right out of there; there wasn't any sign of the underling stopping with her explosions.

"Ya see just how weak you all are? Not even a CPU candidate can stand up to the power of one hundred rockets exploding in their face!" the underling yelled out to her struggling enemies, rapidly pulling the trigger to unleash several more loads of rockets into the air, the automatic tracking system doing all of the hard work aiming, leaving the green haired girl perfectly free to gloat. "With this, nothing's to stop ASIC, you hear me? Nothing!"

"Oh, you're absolutely right about that. After all, you are going to be stopped thanks to nothing." The underling turned to see Bauen, now out of his armour, holding onto a completely unconscious Warechu by the tail, his other hand holding onto a rather precious disc that glowed with an emerald green power, the sight of which caused the underling to gasp. "You made a rather smart choice, choosing a completely defenceless animal to act as the guardian of the Mascot. After all, if we all know you're going to lose, then it might as well just be over and done with."

"What the - ? Damn it, that's what I get for trusting a rat to do my job!" the underling spat, raising her rocket launcher to point directly at Bauen, not that the elderly scientists showed any fear on his face from the act whatsoever. "It doesn't matter anyway! Even if you have the Mascot, I'll just destroy it along with you! Ya think it can survive so much firepower!?"

She pulled the trigger.

Nothing.

She pulled it again.

Same response.

"What the hell!?"

"Underling. Poor, poor underling. Do you really not understand how these weapons work?" Bauen tutted, waving a small control in the other hand as he let the Mascot float of her own power. "I would've thought even the most basic fighter would understand that if they use suck reckless attacks, they're bound to run out of ammunition sooner than later. You were defeated by what you could use to fight against us – _nothing_."

"Uh…" suddenly, the amount of weapons being aimed around here appeared far more threatening, the old man throwing Warechu to the side roughly as he pulled out a pair of bottles, ready to transform at a moment's notice as the CPU candidates stood up, the elements swirling around the two White Sisters while the sound of a gun cocking brought a smirk to Black sister's face. "Well, that doesn't mean anything! After all, even without this weapon, I still have my exoskeleton! You'll never hit me!"

"Ah, yes, the exoskeleton I worked on. It's the same one that had been sitting on my desk when I left, right?" Bauen remarked, a grin appearing on the underling's face as she nodded. "Perfect! After all, I didn't get much of a chance to properly test it when I left it there; most of the systems seem to be working, though I doubt you had the time to test them all…"

"Oi, Bauen! This isn't the time for your stupid experiments! You're tinkering is apparently what got us into this mess!" Black sister called out, Bauen merely giving her a dismissive wave that didn't exactly earn him any favours as he started to rummage about in his back pocket, throwing one of the bottles to the ground beside Warechu as he pulled out a small switch of sorts. A bright smile appeared upon his face, while the others steadily began to grow more confused as he began to wave it forth.

"See this? This will be the final experiment for that exoskeleton." The man declared, lifting up the cover on top of the actual switch and resting his thumb over the top, clearly enjoying the way that the underling squirmed – she had no way of knowing what was actually about occur. "Now, shall we begin the experiment?"

A single click was all that was needed before a massive explosion engulfed the underling, her body thrown into the walls where several rocks collapsed upon her, half burying the green haired girl as she tried to stop the world from spinning. Though her head hadn't fully recovered from the rapid movements of her brain, she was still able to see Bauen stalking forward slowly, a grim smile upon his face.

"It's not so fun when it's you getting hit by the explosion, is it?" the man muttered low, the underling barely able to raise her head. "You're playing with things you're not prepared for. You're trying to be someone more powerful, more agile and more importantly, more _successful than you could ever hope to be._ Don't think you fooled any of us with that phoney disguise. I've been able to plot this plan from the very beginning and it's all because you didn't even stop to think about how the oracle actually behaved, no, how any oracle actually behaved. If you had at least copied the personality of any other oracle, it may have been a smidgen more realistic. What you did? Barely worth a part in the primary school play."

"Don't forget about me though chu!" Bauen whipped around to see an, albeit shaky, Warechu suddenly on his feet, a disc far too familiar to the Mascot sat in his hand. One look downward was all that was needed to see that Bauen was still holding on to the original Leanbox Mascot, meaning that the one in the rat's hand was… "You may have Leanbox's Mascot chu, but we have one given by the boss above! Do you think you can beat the great Warechu!? If I can't have my dear angel Compa's love by waiting, I'll just have to take it by fo-!"

 _ **DISCHARGE BOTTLE!**_

 _ **DISCHARGE CRUSH!**_

A rider kick with the power of a tank quickly shattered Warechu's dreams of both victory and love, as well as the false Mascot disc in his hand. Before the mouse could even question who it was that had the _absolute gall_ to attack him, Warechu found himself being booted far away out of the dungeon, the one responsible dusting off his boot with a small chuckle.

"Thanks for the assistance Bauen. Though I didn't think you'd bring all the players into the game and miss me out."

"What can I say Pallad? The 'game' wouldn't have worked properly if everyone knew you were there." Bauen answered back, the other CPU Candidates startling slightly; with Pallad here and Nepgear left in the hospital, that meant every single one of the CPU Candidates had been gathered in Leanbox. The black haired boy merely gave a sigh, stretching out his body as he pulled out the puzzle jelly, the tank fullbottle within the sclash driver on his waist being pulled out and handed to its original user. Now then, with all your plans ruined, might as well run away with all of the respect you have left."

"Not again!" was all the underling had to say, running off in the direction of the entrance – maybe she was going to find Warechu, maybe not, it's not like any of the people there really cared about the whole situation.

"I must thank you for saving me from such a strange situation. If there is anything I can do, then please, let me grant what I can." The Mascot solemnly declared, Chika stepping forward at the same time.

"I'm the same as well! I mean, I don't have as much power as a Mascot, but there has to be some things I can do to help out as the oracle!" the proper oracle of Leanbox declared, far more chirpy and energetic than the rather forced excitement of the underling's imitation. "I'll do anything to help you if it means getting my darling Vert back safe post-haste!"

"We only ask that you come with us to grant Nepgear your power – she needs it if she wishes to save the other CPUs." Bauen politely answered, complete with a bow. Now that the oracle actually seemed to be doing her job properly, it was far easier for him to show some real respect to her. "She may not be in the best position mentally either. It would be little, but knowing that she has your strength would do her good."

"I see. Then it will be done. Even only a moment feeling that false Mascot's existence caused shivers to pass through me. If there are people like that who are willing to abuse our power, then I have no choice to assist." The Mascot declared, glowing even brighter as it placed itself within Bauen's inventory.

"And Miss Chika, you'll be glad to know that my self-destructing addition to your exoskeleton systems has only been implemented in that prototype structure. The blueprints I've left in the workshop contain all the positive improvements without the risk." The scientist continued, only for a small amount of surprise to appear on his face when Chika shrugged.

"It didn't really matter, but it's nice to have it anyway. After all, you're only taking the Mascot for a short while so you can save my darling Vert, right? As long as you get it done quickly, then we have nothing to fear here at Leanbox!" the oracle explained with a wink, Pallad giving another chuckle.

"Well, now that every player has been assembled, shall we go visit Nepgear? I haven't seen her for a while, she's bound to be stronger now."

* * *

"Everyone's here?" was the first thing that Nepgear said as she saw the large crowd outside of the window, Bauen carrying Pallad on his bike, Compa carrying Chika on the Bakusou Bike born bike and the others quickly flying directly towards the hospital, arriving in no time at all. Quickly checking to make sure she was presentable, she gave one last look to the comatose IF before coming out to greet them. "Did you manage to succeed?"

"Yep. The Mascot and real Oracle are right here!" Compa cheerfully answered, the nurse in training cocking her thumb towards Pallad who gave a small wave. "We even managed to pick someone else up! Pallad appeared out of nowhere and then he kicked and the day was saved!"

"Perhaps that's just a bit too much summarisation… but it is no doubt correct." The Mascot remarked, forcing its way out of Bauen's inventory with a spark of green light, Nepgear nearly reaching for her weapon before she realised just what it was. In seconds, the pink haired girl's eyes suddenly fell, her entire body drooping slightly. "Might I ask what is the matter? Your team has succeeded young Nepgear."

"I know… so they really didn't need me in order to succeed, huh?" the girl replied, poking her fingers together until a light pressure hitting her in the head returned her focus to the Mascot, hovering warmly above her.

"From what I understand, they fight so bravely because of you and your joint desire to rescue the CPUs. Are you not the one who brought them all together on this quest?" the Mascot questioned in return, Nepgear momentarily lost for words. "Not all people must be warriors; support comes from many different areas and they must all work in harmony in order to succeed. Even then, you _are_ a warrior Nepgear. A moment's weakness does not take that away from you unless you allow it to."

"We're all here for you, you idiot." Uni jokingly added, throwing her arm around Nepgear's shoulders. "I mean, if it weren't for you, I'd… probably, maybe, be no closer to getting my sister and things would still be a mess. You helped me out there."

"Miss Nepgear helped me get my stuff back…" Rom then continued, grabbing a hold of Nepgear's waist, her doey eyes incredibly powerful weapons breaking down every defence Nepgear seemed to have. "And Ram likes you too. Even if she doesn't show it…"

"Hmph." Strong answer from Ram.

"If it weren't for you lot, little Lyrica here would still be a shaking leaf. She'd probably still be that kitten calling out for her master, but you've made her into a real warrior." Pallad concluded, said idol practically curling into herself with a bright blush as Pallad put his hand upon her shoulder. "That's something you all achieved together. Not just any one person. Without you, that teamwork would be shot. So try not to be too hard on yourself."

"Yeah… yeah." Nepgear muttered, a small smile appearing on her face. "Thanks guys. I think I needed that."

As for IF, I think I have a plan." Bauen muttered, leading the way into the girl's hospital room while furiously shaking a white bottle. It was only when the Drillcrusher came out when they became a little bit concerned for the man's sanity. "Right then, it's time for you to wake up IF."

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX BREAK!**_

A rain of power showered down onto IF's body, the brunette stirring as more and more of the doctor bottle's power surged through her body. With a groggy groan, the guild agent rose up from the bed, barely understand where she was until she felt Compa crushing her head into her chest.

"Iffy! You're okay!"

"C-Compa! Let go of me, don't push so hard!" the brunette weakly moaned, the nurse in training finally relenting after a few moments to let IF properly breath. "That was… remind me never to do that again. In any situation whatsoever. It feels like I've shoved my head into a blender and set in max."

"It makes sense, considering you've been hit with a larger dose of a mind altering substance than your body could typically withstand." The scientist answered, letting only the smallest amount of grumpiness enter his voice. "More importantly though, you're safe now, we'll talk about this later. Our biggest priority in that case would be reducing the effect of ASIC in Leanbox. I can't for the life of me figure out what could possibly reverse so great a hold the false religion has on this place."

"That's where I come in! As the oracle of this nation I more than know just what will make this place change its mind." Chika reassured, gently cracking her knuckles with the biggest possible grin on her face. As soon as her eyes landed upon Lyrica, the blue haired girl hid behind Pallad's back – there was something in that stare that was incredibly predatory. "So, _Lyrica_ , even if you're not 5pb, how well do you think you can sing?"

* * *

"Goodness, look at that crowd!" Nepgear said as she looked out among the gathered people. All of them were mumbling between themselves, excitedly speaking about who was the best performer in each of the nations, eagerly awaiting the show that was about to go on. "I guess this is meant to chance everyone in Leanbox in one fell swoop."

"That would explain all of the cameras at least. This is going to be televised as well." Pallad pointed out, the cameras suspended in mid-air thanks to Bauen's own personal adjustments. While they were doing all their fancy shots to ensure the TV version looked its best, they would be minimal disturbances. "Not a single person's going to be missing this, not even in other nations."

"Calm down you two! It's just a concert!" Uni quickly barked, Rom and Ram settling down only in the smallest possible way as they tried to take in everything at once. Seeing as her words weren't going to have an effect, all Uni could do was fold her arms and turn away. "It's not even like I wanted to come to this concert anyway. I just don't have anything better to do and if it has the backing of all the CPU Candidates, more people are going to change!"

"But this is our first concert! We're so totally going to brag about all this to Mina when we get home!" Ram excitedly declared, Rom nodding beside her. Perhaps it hadn't been the best idea to give them some drinks as well, the sugar clearly wasn't helping Uni's babysitting job.

"Hello everybody!" the cheering only grew as soon as 5pb stepped out onto the stage, completely unfazed by the large numbers compared to her typical personality. "I'm here to put on a special performance for you all, thanks to the CPUs efforts! Can we make a special promise? Make sure you believe in them, because they're the ones who help make things like this possible! Don't get fooled by anyone else! With that said, let's jump into the first song, People Game!"

 _Kanae rareru, yume bakari de,  
Afureteta DAYS.  
Itsumo miteta wonderland,  
Ima wa doko ni aru no?_

 _Kimi no naka ni, kizamareteru,  
Arifureta BEAT.  
Motto volume agete,  
Ano hi no data load shite._

 _Miyou yo  
Tachi…aga…ru denshi on to,  
Kasa…naru…mune no kodou,  
Atsuku naru vibration!_

 _Ugokidase, PEOPLE GAME!  
Kono sekai, HERO GAME!  
Kakemeguru idenshi no senritsu ninotte!  
Maiagare, PEOPLE GAME!  
Sono tsubasa, HERO GAME!  
Itsuka mita, risou no jibun koete,  
Kagayaku mirai e!_

 _Mabuta no oku, yaki tsuiteru,  
Akogareta SCENE.  
Semete kocchi muite,  
"Ima" ni focus shite,_

 _Miyou yo  
Meni…utsu…ru shinrabanshou,  
Tsuna… garu… shikou kairo,  
Azayaka na imagination!_

 _Ugokidase, PEOPLE GAME!  
Kono sekai, HERO GAME!  
Kimi ga iru haikei mo stage ni kawaru!  
Maiagare, PEOPLE GAME!  
Sono tsubasa, HERO GAME!  
Itsuka mita risou no jibun koete,  
Kagayaku mirai e!_

 _Ugokidase, PEOPLE GAME!  
Kono sekai, HERO GAME!  
Kakemeguru idenshi no senritsu ninotte!  
Maiagare, PEOPLE GAME!  
Sono tsubasa, HERO GAME!  
Itsuka mita risou no jibun koete,  
Kagayaku mirai e!_

"Her songs, you heard one of them before in Genmeer, didn't you?" Pallad remarked as they settled into the concert – whereas the others had been happy to join the crowd and start cheering along with the rest of them, the two guys of the group had been relegated to nothing more than security. Not that Pallad was taking the job seriously at all, considering he had positioned himself on the structures that held up the lights and was swinging his legs to the music. "It was slower, morose, longing for the CPU that had disappeared. Now, it's energetic, lively, singing about the wonders of now and the future. If it weren't for you, I doubt that 5pb would be able to sing about such things."

"If she sung anything else, then the effect wouldn't be as strong." Bauen countered, but he never denied the statement. There was an energy to 5pb's movements that hadn't been there back in Genmeer, not just an act, but genuine enjoyment as she rocked out on stage, the crowd roaring as she finished the song. This was who she deserved to be, proud and confident. "5pb's just the headlining act however. Do you happen to know who the main act is?"

"I wasn't told. Chika only gave this really creepy laughter when I asked." Pallad replied, turning to the stage where 5pb was giving her final bows.

"Thank you all for coming tonight! Are you feeling the energy!?" the idol screamed out to the crowds, receiving a positive answer that could almost burst people's ear drums. "That's great to hear! Fortunately for you, I'm just the starting act! Please, remember our promise as I welcome… Juniper!"

"Juniper?" Bauen couldn't believe his eyes as he watched the… _boy band_ step out onto the stage, practically glittering in that annoying poncey way that only the most arrogant of men could do. Clearly flaunting their wealth for all its worth with the amount of bling upon their body and from the moment they opened their mouths, the scientist knew the reaction from the crowd.

"Hey there everybody! We're Juniper and by the end of this show, you'll all be under our control." The main singer of the group declared flamboyantly, throwing out his arms expecting a wild welcome. "No one is immune to our charms, boy or girls! Now, let us sweep you sexy sillypants off your feet!"

…

…

…

…

"The hell!? Who the hell wants to listen to same lame ass boy band in this day and age!?"

"Go home! Get a real job!"

"If giving my love to the CPUs means supporting these guys, then I'm out of here!"

"U-um, Bauen? What are we meant to do?" 5pb quietly asked as waveforms passed through her eyes, the idol having snuck of stage after introducing the new group. Bauen almost missed the question with how hard he was sighing in exasperation; even when he was younger, boy bands had already fallen out of favour for the far more popular idols and idol groups. The fact that Juniper was completely unrepentant about the sheer abuse being flung in their direction only made the whole thing worse. "I was told by Chika that they were Lady green Heart's favourite group! I didn't think they'd be taken like this!"

"Your audience, no offence intended, is mostly male otaku. The likelihood of male idols succeeding should've been glaringly obvious from the start." Bauen muttered, turning to where Pallad was sitting. Or at least, where he had been sitting, for now he was doing his utmost best to hold back the audience from a riot as 5pb moved to force Juniper off the stage for the time being. "The fact that this is all being broadcast all over the place is only making this worse. If we don't come up with an answer too, this whole thing'll be ruined…"

But then a plan came to mind and in a second, everything was going to plan.

"What are we going to do?" Nepgear asked, poking her fingers together as best as she could between the raging members of the audience. If it got any worse, they would end up being crushed by the mob and there didn't seem to be any assistance coming from the stage. "Maybe we could…"

But then a shocked sound passed like a wave through the audience, the party immediately turning to the stage as a giant cloud of steam suddenly formed. Weapons were soon at the ready, each and every one of the girls ready to push forth and attack; there was only one pair that they knew who fought using steam like that and if they had chosen to attack another concert, then they would be on the defensive this time!

 _DEEP INSIDE, Dare no tame?  
DEEP INSIDE, Nani no tame?  
Chikara motomete… samayou!_

"Is that… Bauen!?" IF was the first one to call out, the man clinging tightly to the microphone as the smoke dispersed to reveal his form. At first, there was silence to the revelation, only for the crowd to suddenly let out a vicious roar of approval, weapons quickly disappearing back into their inventories as they listened to the old man rocking out. "He can sing!?"

"I don't remember him ever mentioning something like that!" Compa said, more yelled as the cheering and chanting grew by the second. "But whatever he's doing is saving the plan!"

 _Yami no naka de, uzuku shodō,_

 _Hibiku kodou - ENDLESS (ENDLESS)._

 _Nandokuite, imashi metemo,_

 _Sora wo kyou mo - ANSWERLESS (ANSWERLESS)._

 _SO I JUST FIGHT OUT,_

 _Maboroshi no yume wa samenai NIGHTMARE._

 _Nidoto kakoga, kawaranai nara,_

 _Asu ni aragau dake da!_

 _Ah...Tatoe mezasu saki ni..._

 _Kanashimi igai nani mo nai to shitemo!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Sono hitomi!_

 _DEEP INSIDE Sono kokoro!_

 _Daremo shiranai, shinjitsu ga aru!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Sora no hate!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Umi no soko!_

 _Hikari hitotsu mo, mienai,_

 _Yami ga hirogaru… PANORAMA!_

 _Komaku yurazu, nari yamanai,_

 _Iratsuku oto - ENDLESS (ENDLESS)._

 _Nanimokamo o, koban da mama,_

 _Nagusamesae - NEEDLESS (NEEDLESS)._

 _SO I JUST FIGHT OUT,_

 _Karamitsuku koe wa kienai NIGHTMARE._

 _Nidoto toki ga, modoranainara_

 _Itami o suteru dakeda!_

 _Ah...Hakuchūmu no youni…_

 _Kanashimi sae mo aimai ni natteku!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Dare no tame?_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Nani no tame?_

 _Yume wa itsumade yume wo miseru?_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Sono sakebi!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Sono namida!_

 _Tsukinai omoi, kanjite,_

 _Shijima ni hibiku… inazuma!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Hito no yume._

 _DEEP INSIDE, Yume no yume._

 _Hakanai tsuyosa..._

 _DEEP INSIDE, Sono hitomi!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Sono kokoro!_

 _Daremo shiranai shinjitsu ga aru!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Sora no hate!_

 _DEEP INSIDE, Umi no soko!_

 _Hikari hitotsu mo, mienai,_

 _Yami ga hirogaru… PANORAMA!_

"That old man's got a mouth on him!" Uni gasped in amazement as she joined the rapturous applause. Now, compared to idols and the pop they typically pushed out onto the masses, the amount of passion, emotion and energy packed into that song was way more to the black haired girl's liking, not that she often got the chance to listen to it with how much work she had and how her sister hadn't exactly approved of the song choices… "Did he really just pull that out of nowhere? I don't think even most performers could do that."

"I… really like Mr Bauen's singing!" Rom certainly didn't exactly understand all of the meaning behind the song, but it was high pace and energetic, which was fun. Plus, everyone else was enjoying it as well, meaning it had to be good, right? Her twin's reaction was pretty much the same.

"Guys, you should probably go towards the stage. He's ushering you over!" IF whispered, not that it was entirely necessary, the CPU Candidates slowly moving forward as Pallad appeared on the stage beside Bauen, listening to the man's whispers. Whatever the old man had planned, he clearly managed to get the CPU Candidate of Genmeer to agree – how bad could it go compared to Juniper's entrance.

"Now, do you want to listen to those arrogant little children who are calling themselves a boy band, or would you rather listen to some _proper music!?"_ Bauen called out, not even needing to push out his microphone to capture the huge roar of approval. "Let me say this then. This world is no longer yours – it is under my control. Everything here…. Is part of my game!"

"How's he playing the crowd like that?" Nepgear asked, only to find Pallad standing right before her at the side of the stage. All of the CPU Candidates were bunched together out of sight, watching as the man continued on his frankly, egotistical rant as if it were something he spouted all the time. "I thought they were all here for idols."

"The audience consists mostly of male otaku. If we can't play to the idol side, then might as well play to the other side… TV shows." Pallad answered with a knowing smile, clearly understanding far more than the other CPU Candidates did and completely unwilling to share anything about it. "But that doesn't mean we're going to forget the idol part. Let me tell you what's going to happen…"

"Now, it's time for my judgement… it's time for Justice!" Bauen yelled, the lights dimming as the crowd continued to cheer.

 _Nemuru yōna , seijaku no yami de,  
Niramitsukeru, shinjitsu no yukue.  
Tenohira de, korogasu MARIONETTE.  
_

 _Kishimu yō ni, ugokidasu sadame,  
Kuroi honō ga, utsukushiku togatte.  
Tsuranuita, inochi no kusabi._

 _Taorekonda sono basho de,  
Sotto me wo tojireba ī.  
"Jikan" ga miru yume no naka de,  
Yasuraka ni mu ni kaerou…_

 _JUSTICE - yoake no ōzora ni,  
Mei hibiku toki no CAMPANELLA!  
JUSTICE - kako ya yume ya kioku,  
Karamitsuku subete wo JUST RESET!  
JUSTICE - ano hi no itami sae,  
Dakishimeru yo ni kiete ku!  
JUSTICE - furikaerazu yukou,  
Ima hajimari no sekai kara RESET!_

 _Sameta ato no, bōbaku no hate de,  
Kakikaete ku, shinjitsu no RULE.  
Tenohira de, aragau MARIONETTE.  
_

 _Nageku yō ni, kuzure yuku REAL,  
Hieta honō wo, utsukushiku kazatte.  
Okuridasu, tamuke no sanbika._

 _Hajike tonda haguruma wo,  
Sotto te ni no se kiku kodō.  
"Jikan" ga miru yume no naka de,_

 _Yasuraka ni tomareba ī…_

 _JUSTICE- mada mi me no ōzora ni,  
Mei hibike toki no CAMPANELLA!  
JUSTICE - kako to kyō wo tsunagu,  
Factor no subete wo JUST RESET!  
JUSTICE - ano hi no namida sae,  
Gensō no mukō e kiete ku!  
JUSTICE - tamerawazu ni yukou,  
Sā hajimari no sekai kara RESET!_

 _JUSTICE - tadashī-sa no kanashimi.  
Kanade yuku toki no CAMPANELLA.  
JUSTICE - nando kurikaeshite,  
Tachikirenu rensa wo JUST RESET._

 _JUSTICE- yoake no ōzora ni,  
Mei hibiku toki no CAMPANELLA!  
JUSTICE - kako ya yume ya kioku,  
Karamitsuku subete wo JUST RESET!  
JUSTICE - ano hi no itami sae,  
Dakishimeru yo ni kiete ku!  
JUSTICE - furikaerazu yukou  
Ima hajimari no sekai kara RESET…!_

"And now, for the one's you've heard us ranting and raving about, the CPU Candidates!" Bauen yelled, throwing his arm out as they came onto the stage. Fortunately, the rapturous applause continued even as Pallad came out onto the stage last – apparently Bauen had done a good job on warming them up to make performers.

"Hello, my name is Nepgear, the CPU Candidate of Planeptune! It's nice to meet you all." Nepgear began with a small bow. Bauen almost immediately spotted several different audience members who had immediately fallen in love with her just from that.

"The name's Uni, from Lastation. If you keep leering at me like that, I'll never forgive you!" Uni yelled out. Bauen flinched; perhaps there was a masochistic side in all males that only a few acknowledged, but even that kind of greeting had managed to earn a fair few admirers.

"Howdy everyone! I'm Ram and this is my super cute sister Rom! It's super cool to meet you!"

"Uh-huh…" Ah, that was a problem. Considering just how old those two were, or at least looked, he would have to be extra careful with the audience, the forums were probably already bursting to seams with inappropriate jokes. If he found something bad on the internet, he'd be killed as soon as White Heart returned.

"CPU Candidates!? Then that means… they're imoutos! Little sisters! Damn, that makes them super cute!"

"All the archetypes are there! The tsundere, the girl next door and the polar opposite twins! This is a total win!"

"These girls are way more tempting than that crusty old deity! They're on a whole new level compared to that rockin' old man as well!"

"Um, we're going to sing for you now, with the CPU Candidate of Genmeer, Pallad, giving us music! We're not the best, but please listen to our song!"

The crowd cheered.

* * *

 **And that's the chapter end. Please, keep telling me where I can improve on my work - hopefully the start of this chapter has shown that I am willing to acknowledge and correct my failures, if not explain why certain things have been phrased the way they have or certain statements were made. I will admit, I did get a little vindictive when it came to the names of the chapters - I feel like the _least_ important part of the chapter is what I end up calling it. I do have new names that will prevent repeats, but I think I'll keep the self depreciative chapter names for a little while longer.**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


	15. 15 - the Pandora's Box

**Welcome back to Build! Aah... University started up and now time has gotten seriously crunched. Summer Holiday, why can't you come back...? Well, it's probably given me more inspiration than ever before, so I guess I should count myself lucky. So, while I watch Zero-One and try to finish my other work, here's a new chapter! Anyway, let's go!**

 _Super hero time!_

 _Bauen: An ancient evil awoken to wreak havoc on the land... a cliche but a dangerous one all the same._

 _Zelda: I suppose you're hardly in a better position to talk about cliches. Collecting powers to save the damsels in distress, how fantastical!_

 _Bauen: Well, when you put things like that, you aren't incorrect..._

 _Zelda: Either way, we have a battle at hand and I shall not back down!_

 _B + Z: Rider once more! The_ _hero has come!_

* * *

"Remind me never to do this again." Bauen muttered bitterly as he gave a cough, eagerly partaking in the water bottle that was handed to him by an excited Nepgear. "Haven't sung like that in years, and never outside a karaoke bar. Tch, at least I remembered those lyrics still."

"But Bauen, you were incredible! Even we didn't manage to get the same levels of cheers that you did!" the pink haired girl declared, a sparkle in her eye as she spoke. "Where did you learn to sing like that!? I'm kind of jealous!"

"Well, if you like a show and the show has a nice opening, it gets stuck in your head, doesn't it?" the elder man gruffly replied, his face falling slightly as a depreciative chuckle came out of him." When I learned the lyrics to those songs, they were some of the latest releases. Now they're all chanting about 'classics' and 'nostalgia'…"

Despite the man's gently growing depression, Nepgear couldn't suppress the giggles that bubbled up in her throat, the other CPU Candidates joining her to Bauen's further distress. After all, with statements like that, you could forget that Bauen was the man responsible for several deaths, locked away to wither in the Gamindustri Graveyard. His complaints made him sound like any other ordinary old man.

"Either way it was fun! Just like a live action rhythm game!" Pallad remarked, his eyes firmly glued to the game console in his hands as he, rather conveniently, completed yet another song in his own rhythm game. "Sure, I may not have gotten the high score, but it was a perfect performance."

"As if there could've been any other result than perfect success! It was my masterplan after all." Chika proudly declared, a smug expression plastered upon the green haired oracle's face.

"You mean Bauen and Pallad's plan right? If we left things to you, we'd have a riot on our hands." IF interjected, hands on her hips as Chika let out an awkward chuckle.

"Well, it's fine so long as I never have to do anything so embarrassing again." Uni said with a groan, flexing her fingers in front of her face. "I mean, we did get a bunch of shares out of it… but we didn't get as much as we could've because Bauen won the crowd over. But, I guess it's more than enough for me to go home satisfied."

"Right! We should get going too Rom! Mina's gonna get mad that we left!" Ram suddenly realise, a bolt of shock flying through the tiny brunette twins.

"Wait, you're going!? But we were having so much fun. Are you sure you can't stay?" Nepgear asked, a pout slowly growing on her face. With the tears that were also beginning to form in her eyes, it was the utmost epitome of adorableness, one that many would struggle to fight against.

"Stop pouting like that Nepgear. It's not like I want to… but I have my own things that need to be done." Uni excused, turning her eyes away with folded arms before she began to walk out of the Leanbox Basilicom.

"Bye Miss Nepgear…" Rom began in turn, only to find herself grabbed by the arm by her sister and forcibly dragged away. Ram was far too cheerful as she said her following line.

"Stupid Rom, don't say bye to her! C'mon, let's leave this joint!"

"Indeed, the game of life is still afoot in Genmeer. Got to keep it nice for when Egi makes his return after all." Pallad concluded with an emphatic bow, Nepgear left stunned as the Genmeer CPU disappeared in less time it took for her to finish blinking.

"Don't worry about it Ge-Ge. You'll be able to see them soon enough, I'm sure of it!" Compa reassured, the bubbly nurse-in-training's hand upon her shoulder bringing a small, if shaky, smile to Nepgear's face.

"You sure it's okay to leave you lot like this?" Bauen questioned Chika while Nepgear watched the others leave, his eyes remaining on the gradually disappearing backs. "Those lot managed to raise a fair amount of shares for their own landmasses; Genmeer got a double dose. How's Leanbox going to deal with that?"

"Don't worry your wrinkly head about it." Chika assured, eyes closed with a smile so she could avoid looking at the rage that briefly erupted upon Bauen's face. "The alternative was letting those shares go to ASIC, not Leanbox. We really haven't been affected that bad relatively. Better they have the shares than the bad guys, right? Besides, when my darling Vert comes back home, we'll get them back overnight."

"If we don't have to worry about that, then you just need to find out what to do with the Mascots, right?" 5pb asked, poking her fingers together with a small smile on her face. "Then we can get the CPUs back and healthy!"

"You say that as if it's any easy task." Bauen commented with a shake of his head, though the smirk on his face removed any bitterness held in the words. "Don't you worry yourself. We'll bring back Vert and the others as soon as possible. Then maybe I can consider myself…"

" _Hello? Can you hear me, Nepgear? Everyone?"_ Histoire's voice suddenly crackled into their ears, Compa and Nepgear quite literally jumping in their seats as the pair of motorbikes they were on came to a stop.

"Histoire?" Nepgear said. "We have the Mascots on our side, were heading back to Planeptune now.

" _Thank goodness, that will make my following request far easier."_ The tome sighed over whatever mystical manner she used to talk to them. _"I'm afraid you must make a detour. The island to the west of Planeptune's borders has been accosted by ASIC troops. I need your assistance there as soon as humanely possible."_

"An island to the west of Planeptune…? Surely not." Bauen scoffed, jumping off the Machine Builder and letting it return to its phone form once Nepgear came off. Or perhaps a second too early, for Nepgear found herself stumbling and planting face first in the ground when the bike suddenly disappeared. "There hasn't been anything there when I last checked, and I highly doubt anything's changed now. Too small for anything of worth."

"Unless they wanted to make an attack point. They wouldn't need the size for a full on base of operations, just enough room to temporarily house supplies and men." IF mused with a frown, the brunette giving a low hum. "I guess an island like that would be perfect for an invasion, if it weren't so visible."

" _I cannot assume as to their intentions, only that they provide a very real threat to Planeptune and the shares you have gathered."_ Was all Histoire could say on the matter. _"Please, make great haste. We cannot afford to allow ASIC any foothold on the island."_

"Well, with an order like that, I suppose there's no alternative. I've been looking to test out a new combination." Bauen sighed, a pair of blue bottles held in his hands vigorously shaken and their caps twisted into place. "Nepgear, could you use your CPU form to fly there?"

"Um, I should be able to." Nepgear answered, a rush of energy engulfing her form before Purple Sister stood in her place, taking IF and Compa by the hand. It was only when she looked to their conjoined hands when she noticed a small problem. "Bauen, are you going to be taking 5pb?"

 _ **KUJIRA!**_

 _ **JET!**_

 _ **BEST MATCH!**_

"I'm not going to leave her now, am I?" Bauen snarked back with a grin, placing his hand upon the lever of the Build Driver now sitting upon his waist. "I do hope you're ready for a fast flight though, Lyrica."

"A fast flight…?"

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"Henshin!"

 _ **AMAKAKERU BIG WAVE! KUJIRA-JET! YEAH!**_

The power of a whale and a jet came down upon Bauen's body in shining navy and cyan respectively, the animal's form shaping the right side of his armour while a runway with its own tiny little jet formed the left. The jet engine built into the wings upon the rider's back began to burn into action, eyes formed of a whale and jet turning to look at a suddenly far more nervous 5pb.

"I'm not too sure…" the blue haired idol whispered, yet she took Bauen's hand and let out a squeak when his arms suddenly wrapped around her waist. "B-Bauen, what are you doing!?"

"My apologies, but I don't trust myself to keep you safe if I'm not holding onto you like this. I hope you understand." Build answered, whatever reply 5pb wanted to give quickly devolving into little more than a scream of fear as the Kamen rider disappeared into the distance.

"H-hey, wait up!" Purple Sister called out, flying after the pair as fast as her body could take her with Compa's cheers of excitement and IF's warnings ringing out into the air.

One harrowing journey later, and 5pb was ready to kiss the ground in relief, if it weren't for the fact that they had landed in a forest and the recent rain had stirred the earth beneath into a horrific puddle of mud. Luckily, Purple Sister didn't take long to regain on their position and the rest were deposited safely, just in time to see a sword's blade mere inches away from Kamen rider Build's face.

"Reinforcements, right! Nobody gets past me, get into your…" the redhead dramatically began, only to realise just who she was pointing her blade at. "…I remember you! Lastation!"

"You claimed we would meet again, Falcom. I had hoped it would be in better circumstances, but alas." The older man answered, removing the bottles from his driver and letting the transformation fade away, followed by a burst of light returning Nepgear's normal appearance. "Histoire sent us as reinforcements. Might I ask where the rest of the forces are?"

"Rest of the forces…?" Falcom parroted as she lowered her sword, head tilting in confusion. "Oh, it's just me. I was visiting a couple of friends when these guys attacked, so I've been beating them back any time they get close to the village here. It's where I was raised; can't just leave it to be eaten by the bag guys!"

"Wow, you've been defending this entire island by yourself!? Miss Falcom, that's amazing!" Compa gushed, bringing a small blush and a chuckle to Falcom's face.

It was worthy praise. Small as it was in comparison to the other landmasses, the island was still an island. For a lone girl to defend such a large area of space for any amount of time was unreasonable at best. The act spoke volumes about Falcom's abilities as an adventurer.

"Sheesh, you say it as if I'm not just fending off the invaders at the village." Falcom immediately deflected, though one only needed one look at the girl's face to realise just how pleased she was with such words. "Truth is, unless I can hit them where they're hiding, things are bound to go bad sooner or later. If you're reinforcements, then could you try and find out where their base is and deal with it? I can keep defending the people here."

"How could we say no? After the help you gave us back in Lastation, it's finally time to return the favour!" Nepgear enthusiastically answered, her sword held proudly in hand for a moment before it was returned to her inventory.

"That's great! I've got a slight idea where they might be, but you'll have to look around a bit…"

* * *

 _ **READY? GO!**_

 _ **VORTEX ATTACK!**_

The might of a gorilla fused with the speed of a jet slammed through the robots that plagued the area, their defences providing little use in the face of such a vicious assault. With a mighty cry, Kamen rider Build punched the massive fist of his gorilla half-body directly through the chassis of another, the robot's body torn in half with the ease of ripping paper.

The other mechanical monsters fared just as well against their counterpart. Nepgear moved with incredible speed and finesse as she sliced through, a blade of pure energy perfectly bisecting the trio that tried to attack her from behind. The one who tried to ambush her after survived barely moments longer, a backflip having Nepgear in the perfect position to stab the robot straight through the head.

IF was enjoying herself a disturbing amount as flame and lightning danced around her form, frying and incinerating any who even dared near her position. Those who managed to break through the agent's elemental defences found themselves filled with foreign steel as her qatars stabbed through the robot's armour like butter, those who remained at range soon finding bullet holes decorating their bodies.

 _ **KOTOOO!**_

Though 5pb was not faced with as many of the mechanical enemies, she was no less capable than the others. the blue haired idol didn't even wait for the feet of her microphone stand to move into their scythe formation, merely shoving it into the robot and letting the transformation itself ruin its insides. Now with a proper blade, 5pb ripped out the weapon before she took off the heads of the others approaching.

Not even Compa was standing out of the battle, her needle put through its paces as it forced all manner of strange chemical concoctions into her foes. It mattered not what lay within the liquids that the nurse-in-training pumped into them, only that it certainly didn't react well to their inner circuitry to cause more than a few manic breakdowns and explosions.

"Guardians… bane of my existence." The Kamen rider cursed, futilely trying to rub off the oil that now stained his armour, only to smudge the substance even further across his chestplate. The again, that was what happened when you tried to use an almost comically oversized fist to try and do a delicate task. "We have to have destroyed over fifty of the blasted things, not even counting the monsters natural to this place."

"I guess that just means we're getting closer to the main hideout. They wouldn't have this much security otherwise." IF reasoned, the adrenaline leaving her body to leave her more exhausted than she realised. "Not like we can take a break now. If we've gotten this far, there isn't any way we haven't been heard."

"Still… I feel like we've all gotten stronger! Nepgear happily announced, clenching her fist with a determined expression. "I don't think I would've been able to beat so many of those robots before. So this is the power of all the Mascots together!"

"Yes, yes. Good for you I suppose. Not that it will do you well against us in the end."

Nepgear let out a squeak of surprise, only Bauen's arms suddenly pulling her to the ground letting her avoid the bullet directed straight for her head.

"Terror Burst… because of course you would be here." Bauen growled, the man stepping forward out a cloud of steam with his rifle perching against his shoulders and a chuckle. "What do you need with a place like this? It's tiny, doesn't have any resources – it's useless!"

"Of course you would think that, wouldn't you? For a so called scientist, you are rather idiotic at times." Terror burst sighed, nonchalantly shooting forward and batting aside IF's retaliatory attack. "There's something precious on this island and we will have it at any cost!"

"Not if we can help it!" IF growled, not so easily dismissed.

Shooting forward with some sort of enhancement from one of Compa's creations, IF let out a fierce battle cry, but the black and silver clad man would have none of it. The brunette was forced to stumble to a standstill when a gun was pointed in her direction, only to realise it was aimed at the floor rather than herself. That confusion quickly died when a huge cloud of smoke filled her vision, IF left coughing and only able to weakly stop the boot that dug into her stomach.

"Iffy!" Compa called out, throwing her arms open as her friend flew in her direction.

The only issue was that Compa had no clue how heavy her friend was, finding herself thrown back by the force of IF's body and sent tumbling into a heap. Not that it stopped the pink haired girl from preparing herself to heal IF; even if it was a rough job, it was better to have her back in the fight than out so early.

 _ **GEAR-HUNTER SPARKLING!**_

 _ **ARE YOU READY!?**_

"No time to hold back I suppose. Henshin!"

 _ **SHUWA TO HAJIKERU! GEAR-HUNTER SPARKLING! YEAH-YEAH!**_

A series of bubbles in Terror Burst's face caused the man to give a low grunt, but not as much as the drillcrusher digging into his side did. While it left the black and silver man stumbling to the side however, it didn't completely stop him from shooting Build in return, only to be blocked by the rolling axe.

 _ **ROLL FOUR!**_

Pulling the bottom of his weapon down and rolling the die embedded within, Build tried to push the offensive, cutting straight through the bullets with a burst of energy in his weapon, only for the rider's attack to completely faze through his opponent as if he wasn't there.

"Think again." Build held back a grunt of pain as a rifle's bayonet cut straight down his back with a series of sparks flying off his suit. As if that wasn't enough, the butt of Terror Burst' rifle then slammed into the back of Build's head, sending him to his knees so Terror Burst could slam his face into the ground. "The Telebi Fullbottle, perfect for projecting images. There's no difference between the real and the false."

"I know." Build managed to say mere moments before he too vanished in a cloud of smoke, leaving only a wooden mannequin with a… not so family-friendly message written on its face. "After all, we both have the same techniques."

"What?" Terror Burst immediately whirled around to block the Yonkoma Ninpoutou that would've taken his legs out from beneath him, Build giving a small chuckle as he tapped one of the panels upon the blade. "Bunshin no jutsu… tch, maybe you're more clever than I took you for."

"Shame then that I'm going to have to cut your fight short boys." Both turned to where the latest arrival sat upon something unseen and pointed her own weapon at 5pb's throat, a thin trace of red upon her pale skin speaking of just how close she was to death, much to the idol's utter fear. "We have what we came for. It is almost time to enact the next phase."

"Hmph. I was wondering how long it would take you to find it Star Blazing." Terror Burst answered, Build instinctively shielding his face as a bullet was shot at it.

Even he could tell it wasn't a proper attack however, the black and silver man barely putting any effort into aiming, let alone actively trying to harm Build. He didn't need to; with 5pb mere microseconds away from having her throat sliced open, the rider didn't dare risk anything more than defensive action.

As soon as Terror Burst looked to just what his partner was sitting on however, a laugh came to his lips. Not the maniacal laugh of someone who had lost their mind, nor the laugh of a villain about to finally achieve their grand scheme. No, it was the genuine laugh of someone who found what they were looking at humorous, much to the confusion of those gathered until Star Blazing stood and graciously allowed Terror Burst to lift up her makeshift seat.

"No…"

"Yes, Bauen. The Pandora's Box you lost… It has now returned to our grasp." Terror Burst answered, holding the cursed item high in the air.

As it was, the grey box did not look like much to Nepgear and the others. It was nothing more than a literal box; how could one come to fear it? it wasn't as if there were any switches or buttons to activate anything, nor did it leak any sort of vial substance that could harm them in any way, despite being the source of the strange gas that plagued Gamindustri.

For the Kamen rider however? He looked at it as if it were the plague of plagues, barely able to believe his eyes. His fists were clenched, his stance tight. Though there had been plenty of times where the old man had been annoyed and times where the two before him had angered him, he had never looked so utterly… terrified.

"You know not what you're doing with that box! You'll endanger the very fabric of the world by messing about with it!" Build warned, throwing his hand forward while his other nearly crushed the drillcrusher in its grasp. "That thing was never meant to be unearthed! It's better off lost in time and flung to the farthest space!"

"Oh? Is that what you believe? Well, I think you'll find that we're a little more familiar with than you realise." Terror Burst retorted with no little amount of amusement in his voice, teasingly gesturing with his transteam gun. "After all, this technology of yours is so old fashioned… perhaps it's time we gave it a little upgrade."

Nepgear, Compa and IF immediately moved to check on 5pb as the idol was roughly thrown to the side, leaving Bauen to witness the unbelievable sight before him.

The Pandora's Box was certainly solid; it had been so during all of Bauen's experiences with it and moments before, Star Blazing had been sitting on the bloody thing. There should've been no reason to doubt the fact that the box was standard solid entity.

Yet Terror Burst and Star Blazing completely ignored all laws of physics as they shoved their guns straight through the walls of the box, an eerie purple light emanating from the box as it trembled. Though the process was obscured from him, it was clear to the Kamen rider that something beyond all understanding was happening right before his eyes and even as he charged forward, there was little chance for him to stop whatever plans they made.

It was quickly highlighted by how Star Blazing withdrew her hand with inhumane speed, the transteam gun once held in her hands now shining with a purple and gold sheen shooting at Build.

Before, the armoured man would've been able to tank at least a few of the shots fired from their guns, but a single bullet alone sent Build flying back with a pained grunt, leaving him the perfect open target for more shots in his body. each shot felt _more_ than a mere bullet wound, something festering within his body with every shot that his enemies pumped into him.

"Now this is more like it." Terror Burst chuckled as he withdrew his own gun, admiring it with a disturbing level of casualness. Despite how relaxed he may have acted, it didn't stop from immediately aiming to the side, not even looking as IF and Nepgear were relentlessly gunned down with a series of rapid-fire bullets. "Your designs improved the might of the Pandora's Box… How about Nebulasteam guns?"

 _ **FULLBOTTLE!**_

"…It's not meant to make that sound." Star Blazing murmured in confusion as she inserted her bottle into the port on her newly named gun.

With a shake of her head, the blue and gold covered woman merely separated her blade, easily attaching both halves to the Nebulasteam gun to form her rifle and aiming it towards the girls, 5pb and Compa caught off guard as they tried to care for their injured comrades.

 _ **RIFLE MODE! FUNKY!**_

"Still, simple enough to get it sorted. And once we do, we'll finally be able to take our rightful place." The woman continued, a grin appearing on her face as a mirage of the moon appeared at her rifle's barrel. "Farewell. Be glad that you saw the first step before our grand return!"

 _ **FUNKY SHOT! FULLBOTTLE!**_

The girls instinctively curled up, as if their frail bodies would prove anything against the obvious power that the Pandora's Box had granted their opponent's weapon. No matter whether there was an arm in the way or not, the attack would tear through their flesh and bone as if hitting nothing more than tissue.

It was only after a few moments of nothing that had the girls peeking from behind their arms, only for Compa to let out a pained squeak of despair.

Why?

Because once the bright light faded and the armour covering Bauen's body faded away, the nurse-in-training got a perfect view of Bauen's incredibly pained face as the old man fell to his knees. As soon as his face hit the floor, the girls were greeted to a sight more gory; Bauen's back flayed open, masses of blood dripping down from unspeakable wounds. Even through his armour, a lone attack had been able to deal such massive damage; the girls would've stood no chance.

Their enemies had disappeared, only the smallest wisps of smoke speaking to their presence ever being there. It wasn't as if any of the party cared about that however. There were far more pressing matters to attend to.

* * *

When Bauen awoke, it was to a blinding light that elicited a groan as he covered his eyes. The older man would've sat up if moving didn't bring forth a horrible pain in the entirety of his back a sharp growl escaping Bauen as he fell back against the mattress.

"Where am I…?" he muttered, his eyes adjusting to the harsh light so he could properly gaze upon the purple that coloured the walls. With a colour choice like that, there could only be one place he could be in. "The… Planeptune Basilicom…?"

"Yes. We were fortunate that Nepgear and the others were able to bring you here in time. Had we left you for even a second longer, I fear the damage would've been less… repairable." Histoire's voice muttered from side, Bauen doing his best to try and turn to face the oracle. With the pain that came with nearly any sort of movement however, it was less than optimal. "Oh, please, do not move! I shall try to find a more optimal position. I suppose that is one of the benefits of being capable of flight."

And then the tiny blonde fairy was floating just above his chest, a look of concern plastered upon her face as she buzzed around the various machines that lay scattered around the bed, no doubt the means in which Bauen was able to survive, let alone wake up in… decent health.

"We have had to call many different people in to assist your healing, but I am glad to say you will make a full recovery in time." Histoire commented, a smile appearing upon her lips. "Compa has rarely left your side the whole period."

"And how long is that?" Bauen spoke, realising just how dry his throat was. Luckily for him, Histoire was quick enough to realise his discomfort, a cup gently held to his mouth so he could sip. "What happened to the girls?"

"Thanks to the assistance of the other oracles, your recovery has only taken slightly longer than two weeks. It was only the fact that we have never witnessed such strange damage before that prevented it from being any quicker." Histoire answered, awkwardly shuffling on her tome as she did so.

Bauen had to hide his shock at the admission. While he had certainly been a help to their nations during the journey for the Mascots' powers, there was little reason for them to devote their own resources to his recovery. They had already paid back their debts by granting them access to the Mascots in the first place.

"As for the girls… it has not been easy on them. Both the CPU Candidates of Lowee and Lastation had been attacked by members of ASIC, high ranking members at that. They have managed to come out successful, but it has been a close call each time." Histoire said before her form brightened. "However, not all is lost. Through their actions, Nepgear and her party have managed to get the other CPU Candidates to join the plan to free the CPUs. With them on their side, the plan has a far greater chance of success."

"Thank goodness." Bauen muttered, rubbing a hand across his face. Knowing that Terror Burst and Star Blazing had succeeded in whatever plan they had forged was bad enough. If ASIC had suddenly gained the strength to challenge their group, then their lives would've become twenty times as difficult. "Then, they are here planning?"

And that was when the slight brightness that had entered Histoire's form suddenly melted away again, the oracle not even willing to meet Bauen's gaze. That only sought to make his eyes turn hard, the older man pulling himself back so he could lean regardless of Histoire's warnings not to.

"Bauen… As I have said, you have been resting and recovering for slightly longer than two weeks. Despite the setbacks in the form of the ASIC incidents, that has been more than enough time to conclude the plan and put things into action." Histoire awkwardly explained, poking her fingers together. "As things are now… they have already entered the Gamindustri Graveyard."

"What!?" Bauen exclaimed, not even caring for the searing pain that shot through his body as he tried to stand, his jacket and bandolier sitting on the chairs nearby quickly thrown over his body. "This is no time to be resting! With Terror Burst and Star Blazing, who knows what they're going to come across!?"

"Bauen, you are in condition to act! You will be a burden more than an assistance!" Histoire immediately objected, floating over to his face. "What do you think you can do like this? You said so yourself, there is no telling what dangers await the girls in the Gamindustri Graveyard. The moment you try and enter the battle could be the moment you die for good!"

"I have my own forms of healing, they will have me well enough to do battle soon enough." Bauen muttered gruffly, tidying up his appearance as well as possible. "Besides, our enemy has the Pandora's Box in their grasp. If there is anyone in a position to counter whatever they do with the box, it is me. Even if I don't understand everything, I have still researched what it is capable of."

"Even without any of your equipment?" Histoire's piercing statement caused Bauen to pause, looking to his inventory to be met with a completely empty screen. His anger grew as he fumbled through his various pockets, some Bauen had believed none would be able to find, but they too proved completely empty.

"What have you done with my equipment Histoire!?" Bauen growled, the oracle letting out a cry as Bauen gripped her with incredible strength, his anger alone causing his hands to tremble and thus, shake her vulnerable body. "Those girls need as much assistance as possible if someone manages to unleash the power of Pandora's Box, you know that full well! Where is it!?"

"…I do not have it." Histoire said in a low voice, trying her best to ignore the light pain that came thanks to Bauen's hands. "The girls took it in order to augment their own power. They had idea you would awake in time to assist them, but your technology can still be used by them. they have done it before, have they not?"

"Either under my supervision or to detrimental effect!" Bauen countered harshly, releasing Histoire with a roar of disapproval. "Histoire, you will send me to the Gamindustri Graveyard or I will damn well walk there myself! Those girls may kill themselves if they aren't careful!"

"As will you." Histoire rebutted, but it was clear they were stuck in a stalemate. It was only when Bauen began to move for the door that Histoire finally caved in, the tiny blonde giving a sigh as she focused all of the energy she had in her body. "…Though it took all of the oracles before to teleport them, a single person should be within my capabilities. Let it be known that I highly object to this, but… come back alive, Bauen. Bring them all back alive."

"…I'm doing this for selfish reasons, you know." Bauen spoke as the door materialised in the air before him, a glowing purple portal that slowly swirled with power until the horrific hellscape that was the Gamindustri Graveyard appeared within. "If I don't do this, then I will never be able to fulfil my punishment. It was you who said it was my duty to take care of Nepgear and the others after all. Plus, I need to get my stuff back before they hurt themselves. I don't want you to misunderstand my outbursts."

"Let's be honest with each other. It may have started out that way Bauen, but you have clearly developed a care for them." was all Histoire had to say in response, giving a small giggle as she heard a scoff from Bauen before he stepped through. "You have more than completed your punishment."

* * *

Bauen felt disturbingly at home as he strode through all of the discarded junk and stared at a burning crimson sky. It wasn't an unreasonable sensation; he had spent a huge chunk of time in the Gamindustri Graveyard. If he was being honest with himself, his time with Nepgear and the others had seemed more like a vacation than returning home at times.

But there was no time for reminiscence, not when there was a job to be done. All Bauen had to do was follow the noise of combat as soon as he found it; with most of the inhabitants of the Gamindustri Graveyard either dying or sleeping, it wasn't as if anyone was making any noise otherwise.

Now that his anger had abated, the stinging in Bauen's back returned, the older man letting out a grunt of pain – apparently jumping across a lava river didn't exactly help his injuries that much.

Bauen's first instinct was to open his inventory, only to realise that he had _no_ inventory because the girls took it. While he applauded them for doing what _they_ believed would help them, Bauen couldn't help but feel bitter about it. They could've at least consulted him about it.

He was about to close the inventory, only to notice the tiny icon sitting in the corner, the familiar image of a healing potion sitting innocently before him. With a shake of his head, Bauen withdrew it and gulped it down in a single go, his pain easing immensely; Histoire had no doubt sneaked it in when he went through her portal.

As soon as he was done however, Bauen accidentally dropped the bottle as a harsh crash shook the earth, the old man rushing forward to try and see the cause.

It wasn't exactly necessary. Not with the size of the incredible creature that All of the CPU Candidates were fighting. Clad in black armour thicker than the Basilicom walls and with piercing blue eyes that glowed in the darkness of the Gamindustri Graveyard, the warrior swung a giant axe with a maniacal laughter. The girls were fortunate they avoided the strike; with how deep the craters he left were, their opponent was no weakling.

After all, CFW Judge had already shown his might when he beat Nepgear before, preventing the CPUs from leaving the Gamindustri Graveyard in the first place.

But then again, neither was Nepgear, nor the other CPU Candidates. Clad in their HDD forms, a determination never seen before on their faces glowed as they flew about the battlefield, striking where they could and dodging like flies while they awaited the next opening.

"CFW Judge… This time, I'll actually beat you!" Purple Sister declared, landing on the ground as an aura of four colours began to take over her form. With such a light show, she truly looked like the divine being she was, not that CFW Judge was frightened at all.

"Do your worst." He spat back at her, a resolute expression appearing on the Planeptune CPU Candidate's face as she reached behind her and pulled out a pair of items Bauen had hoped she wouldn't.

"I will."

 _ **GEAR-HUNTER SPARKLING!**_

* * *

 **And for now, that's the end! Next time, get ready for a major battle and revelation as we save the CPUs from their hellish prison! So long as I don't get swamped with work... On a personal note, I'm glad that I managed to get another chapter of this out. I didn't want to leave it on the slightly awkward note that was last chapter's review response. Hopefully we can continue on in a better manner.**

 _Super hero time! See you next time!_


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